Something You Should Know - SYSK Choice: Stop Being So Busy & The Real Fountain of Youth

Episode Date: November 9, 2019

If you cook, I’m sure you’ve heard that when you cook with alcohol, the heat burns off the alcohol quickly. Well, according to science that is impossible. We’ll explore that and why it is important for every cook to know. http://whatscookingamerica.net/Q-A/AlcoholCooking.htm People talk about how busy & overwhelmed they are like it is a badge of honor. However, being busy doesn’t mean you get more done. And it often means tasks don’t get done as well as they could. My first guess in this episode is Christine Carter, a happiness expert at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center and author of the book The Sweet Spot: How to Find Your Groove at Home and at Work (http://amzn.to/2iFBDJi). She is here to discuss the negative effects of too much busyness – and a better way to structure your day so you actually get more done – and done well. You probably know creepy people but what makes people creepy? Most of us know a creepy person when we see one – but what is it about some people that creeps us out? And how do you make sure you aren’t sending out any creepy vibes? Find out in today’s episode. http://www.womenshealthmag.com/sex-and-love/how-to-tell-if-hes-a-creep Do you get an annual physical? It is a common practice because people believe it helps keep them healthy. But does it really? Family physician Davis Liu, M.D., author of The Thrifty Patient (http://amzn.to/2j1UP0m) reveals what is and what is NOT important when it comes to staying healthy and living a long and active life. By the way, he has also discovered the “Fountain of Youth.” He’ll tell you what it is – but you may not like it. This Week’s Sponsors –Airbnb. To learn more about being an Airbnb host visit www.Airbnb.com/host -Simplisafe. For free shipping and a 60-day free trial go to www.Simplisafe.com/something -How to Be Awesome at Your Job podcast. https://awesomeatyourjob.com/podcast/ -The Undercovers podcast. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-undercovers/id1479344440 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a listener to Something You Should Know, I can only assume that you are someone who likes to learn about new and interesting things and bring more knowledge to work for you in your everyday life. I mean, that's kind of what Something You Should Know was all about. And so I want to invite you to listen to another podcast called TED Talks Daily. Now, you know about TED Talks, right? Many of the guests on Something You Should Know have done TED Talks. Well, you see, TED Talks Daily is a podcast that brings you a new TED Talk every weekday in less than 15 minutes. Join host Elise Hu.

She goes beyond the headlines so you can hear about the big ideas shaping our future. Learn about things like sustainable fashion, embracing your entrepreneurial spirit, the future of robotics, and so much more. Like I said, if you like this podcast, Something You Should Know, I'm pretty sure you're going to like TED Talks Daily. And you get TED Talks Daily wherever you get your podcasts. Today on Something You Should Know, what makes a person creepy? We'll explore the characteristics of creepiness. Also, being busy. Everyone is so busy. How many times have you heard, oh, she's a very busy person? In a way, that's code for she's important. That's impressive, right? It seems like all the most impressive

people in our world are busy, busy, busy. But that is a big cultural lie. Plus, most cooks today know that if you cook with wine or alcohol, the alcohol burns off. Except it doesn't, and it's important to understand why. And wouldn't you love to find the Fountain of Youth? Well, one well-respected doctor has, in fact, discovered it. The Fountain of Youth is something I've discovered the last 15 years I've been in practice. It turns out no one wants the Fountain of Youth. Find out why today on Something You Should Know. People who listen to Something You Should Know are curious about the world,

looking to hear new ideas and perspectives. So I want to tell you about a podcast that is full of new ideas and perspectives, and one I've started listening to called Intelligence Squared. It's the podcast where great minds meet. Listen in for some great talks on science, tech, politics, creativity, wellness, and a lot more. A couple of recent examples, Mustafa Suleiman, the CEO of Microsoft AI, discussing the future of technology. That's pretty cool. And writer, podcaster, and filmmaker John Ronson discussing the rise of conspiracies and

culture wars. Intelligence Squared is the kind of podcast that gets you thinking a little more openly about the important conversations going on today. Being curious, you're probably just the type of person Intelligence Squared is meant for. Check out

Intelligence Squared wherever you get your podcasts. Something you should know. Fascinating intel. The world's top experts. And practical advice you can use in your life. Today, Something You Should Know with Mike Carruthers. Hello, and welcome to our weekend episode this week of Something You Should Know. And I want to start with something I think is really interesting and very appropriate as we head into the holiday season, because it is this time of year when people start to do a lot of cooking, and oftentimes holiday cooking involves alcohol. And I've always heard, and I imagine you've heard this too, that when you cook with alcohol, it burns off. I would guess that nine out of ten cooks, if you asked them, would say they believe that. And yet, it turns out to be false. In general, you would have to cook

something for three hours to get rid of all the alcohol. Of course, it depends on the food and the cooking method and the pan, and there are other factors. But generally speaking, alcohol does not disappear quickly in the cooking process. Many cookbooks say that when cooking a sauce, for example, you simmer it for 20 to 30 seconds to remove the alcohol. But experiments show that it's just impossible. Couldn't possibly happen. So when cooking for others, remember the fact that some of the alcohol does remain could be a significant concern to recovering alcoholics, parents of children, and others who might have some ethical or religious reason to avoid alcohol.

And that is something you should know. So let's talk about the problem of getting things done and multitasking and being busy. And I'm sure you can relate to it on some level, which is why I'm sure you're going to enjoy listening to my first guest today, Christine Carter. Christine is a happiness expert at UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center. She's a speaker and a writer and a mother, and like you, she's very, very busy. Christine has a book out called The Sweet Spot, How to Find Your Groove at Home and at Work, and she believes this preoccupation we have with always being busy, trying to multitask

all the time, it's taking a toll on all of us. So Christine, what's the problem here as you see it? I mean, what's so bad about being busy? The problem is that we are so busy, busy, busy all the time, and that we see that busyness and overwhelm as a sign that we are on the road to success. We see busyness as a marker of significance. And it's not? It's not. It's actually a sign that we are not fulfilling our potential. Busyness closely resembles what researchers call cognitive overload in our brain. That cognitive overload makes us less decisive. It hinders our ability to think clearly, to plan, to organize ourselves, to resist temptation, to remember social information,

like the name of our boss's daughter or our daughter's boss. It hinders our ability to control our emotions. Really, it makes it harder to do all the things that we want to do well. Who knew that? I thought being busy just meant you were busy and that maybe you didn't have time for things, but who knew it had all these other side effects? Yeah, no, it absolutely does. And, you know, when we say, oh, you know, she's just really busy, in a way that's code for she's important. That's impressive, right? It seems like all the most impressive people in our world are busy, busy, busy and pressed for time.

But that is a big cultural lie. And when we dial back those feelings of overwhelm and busyness using sort of really strategic tactics, we can do this. We actually can accomplish more. So how did I get so busy being busy? Well, you live in this culture, which values and prizes busyness and is throwing data at you all the time. You have unlimited opportunities to be busy all the time because even if you're just standing in a line, you can be busy checking your email or checking your social media feed

or reading an interesting article. So, you know, we live in a culture that says more is better, especially more information, more stuff, more things to do. And so we all end up here at one time or another. The trick is understanding that this is causing us to enjoy our lives less and also from accomplishing as much as we can when we are operating in our sweet spot. So what does operating in the sweet spot look like? If I'm not super busy, I think people have the tendency to think, well, if you're not busy, you're bored. Yeah, or you're lazy, or you must not be very important. So operating in our sweet spot is that place of maximum impact where we have our greatest powers, where we're living our greatest strengths,

but also it's the least resistance, right? The sweet spot in sports is that place where the bat doesn't break, right? Or it doesn't move. There's no impact on the athlete's shoulder, for example. So knowing that it's your greatest power, but also the least tension, the least stress, because that tension and stress hinders our performance, hinders our power. So the great news is that we can grow our sweet spots. We can live our lives from our sweet spots, both at home and at work. We just need to dial up the ease element of things and also increase our power.

Oh, I love that. I want to dial up the ease element. But where do you even begin? If you're one of those people who's so super busy, you don't even have time to, you barely have time to listen to this interview. I mean, how do you even start to get off that merry-go-round? The busyness treadmill, getting out of the rat race. Okay, the first place to step is to start single-tasking. So when we get really busy, a lot of times we feel compelled to multitask, and a lot of times we actually really pride ourselves on our multitasking ability. So the first step is to realize that when on our multitasking ability.

So the first step is to realize that when you're multitasking, you're much less efficient than if you were single-tasking, and you're increasing the strain and the stress on your brain and sometimes even your body. So allowing yourself to focus singularly on one thing at a time without having your phone on, without getting message alerts, without checking your email at the same time. Let yourself do its most powerful work by focusing on one thing at a time. You're going to complete each of those tasks much faster, so actually be at work for less time while still checking all the same things off your list. But you're also going to do those

tasks better. You're going to be less error-prone in your work. But if I am to do everything one at a time, what if I find that then I don't have time for everything. But you won't, though. This is part of that myth. So, yes, the first time you do this, it's going to be a leap of faith because we've all been taught that multitasking is the only way to get things done because it's more efficient. But what research shows is that it's actually considerably less efficient. We're not actually doing two things or three things at once. Our brain is switching back and forth really rapidly between those different tasks. And we lose time in that

switching back and forth and become more error prone. So not only does it take a lot more time to correct mistakes we might make while multitasking. It takes more time in general. So you just have to try it out one thing at a time. Move from one task, start all the way to finish, then go to the next thing, start all the way to finish. And don't interrupt yourself during that by just taking a quick little glance at your email or actually turn your phone off so that you can, so that you truly can focus.

Well, and it seems like from what you're saying is that if you do that and you do the things well that you do, that you decide to do, that the superfluous will kind of fall away on its own. What falls away is the tension that comes and the irritability that comes from trying to do, to operate in a way that your brain just really wasn't designed to operate. We were not designed to multitask. Our brain was designed to be most powerful when we're doing one thing at a time. So it's like switching from a tractor engine to a Ferrari engine. It's unbelievably rewarding to work this way. And you say that I'll get more done.

I promise you, you will actually be able to get more done. It's not about doing less. I'll tell you, you know, I was in a position in my life where I'm kind of a recovering perfectionist and an overachiever, and I was, you know, I had this great career that I was very successful. I loved it. I did not want to give any part of it up. I had, you know, children, and I love my family.

I've written this parenting book and didn't want to be less of a parent, right? Everything in my life was really hard won. I did not want to give anything up, but I was exhausted. I was busy. I was overwhelmed. I was multitasking all the time, and it really took a toll on my health. I was so exhausted all the time that I had chronic strep infections. I landed one day in the hospital with a kidney infection of all

things. And I realized that if I didn't want to give anything up, I needed to learn to do things differently. And so this is why I wrote this book. This is sort of my recipe book for living within your sweet spot, so that you can have it all, so that you don't have to give up the things that you love. It's about learning to be more powerful and more efficient in the things that you do do. Well, since you brought up parenting, I think that's a really good example of, if you've got three kids and they all want you now, how do you do that one at a time? Well, you know, you've just said it.

So when you can group an activity into, you know, into one actual activity from your brain's point of view, that will work, right? So I have four kids. We eat dinner all together, for example, right? So that's one activity I'm doing with them all. It is also really important for me to remember that if I'm helping one kid with their homework, that it's very hard for me to do another cognitive task. I can't really be helping two kids with their homework at the same time or reading a recipe for what I need to cook for dinner at the same time I'm helping somebody with homework. I can do, however, here's the great caveat, I can multitask if they're not two intellectual tasks at the same

time. So I just don't want my brain to be switching back and forth between two cognitive tasks. So I have found I can fold laundry, for example, at the same time I'm helping one kid with their homework because I don't have to pay attention, really, when I'm folding laundry. I'm not very good at folding laundry, but I don't really care about it either. So errors, it doesn't really matter. I can focus all of my attention on that one child. You know, a lot of times people, when they're really, really busy, they get less done because they spend a lot of time worrying about all the things they have to do

as opposed to doing it. They're stressed out rather than productive. How do you switch from one to the other? You know, that's super common, and it's just this horrible snowball effect, right? You have so much to do that you feel stress, and the more stressed you are, the less productive and efficient and effective you are at that. So it's stopping that snowball from rolling down the hill. One quick tip for how to do this is when you make your task list,

you're likely to feel really overwhelmed by it if you don't tell your unconscious brain when you are going to do things. So if you make a big long list of things that you have to do, but your brain does not know when you're planning on doing those things, it will keep reminding you. It will wake you up in the middle of the night and tell you what it is you need to do. And it's not actually trying to remind you to do it or to help you complete it. None of those intrusive thoughts are helpful at all, especially if you've got it written down on a list. It's just basically asking you, when are you going to do this?

When are you going to do this? When are you going to do this? And as soon as you say, I'm going to do that Thursday at lunchtime, your brain will quiet and those feelings of overwhelm will start to die down. So if you're feeling stressed out, make a list and then tell your brain when you will do it. Actually plot it out on your calendar. I love that. That's a great idea.

Last question and just any other like really clever tips like that that kind of whet people's appetite and kickstart this process that could get them going? Yes. The book is loaded with really quick and easy things that you can do that will dial back overwhelm. One of my favorite things to do is to think about social connections. Any sort of social connection is going to be a real force for power and also create ease in our nervous system. It's just how we're built. So smile at the barista. The next time that you're rushing in to get yourself a cup of coffee to keep yourself going in the afternoon, slow down enough to make eye contact. Ask the barista how they're doing. Chit-chat with somebody in line.

Any sort of social connection like that where're smiling, is basically helping your body reset itself from stress. Those social connections have tremendous power. It's magic to our nervous system. Well, great. I always enjoy talking to you, Christine. You always kind of put a fresh light on everything, so I appreciate your time. Christine Carter is author of the book, The Sweet Spot, How to Find Your Groove at Home and at Work. There is a link to her book on Amazon.com. You can find the link on the show notes page for this episode of the podcast. Thanks, Christine.

Oh, sure. Thank you. It was lots of fun. And good luck with the book. Thanks, Christine. You're a great interviewer. Thank you. Contained herein are the heresies of red off punt wine erstwhile monk turned traveling medical

investigator join me as i study the secrets of the divine plagues and uncover the blasphemous truth that ours is not a loving god and we are not its favored children the heresesies of Redolf Bantwine, wherever podcasts are available. Since I host a podcast, it's pretty common for me to be asked to recommend a podcast. And I tell people, if you like something you should know, you're going to like The Jordan Harbinger Show. Every episode is a conversation with a fascinating guest. Of course, a lot of podcasts are conversations with guests, but Jordan does it better than most. Recently, he had a fascinating conversation with a British woman

who was recruited and radicalized by ISIS and went to prison for three years. She now works to raise awareness on this issue. It's a great conversation. And he spoke with Dr. Sarah Hill about how taking birth control not only prevents pregnancy, it can influence a woman's partner preferences, career choices, and overall behavior due to the hormonal changes it causes. Apple named the Jordan Harbinger Show one of the best podcasts a few years back, and in a nutshell, the show is aimed at making you a better, more informed critical thinker.

Check out The Jordan Harbinger Show. There's so much for you in this podcast. The Jordan Harbinger Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Staying healthy, it involves a lot of things and you're about to find out some of the most important things for living a long and healthy and active life. Things both to do and some things not to do from Dr. Davis Liu, who is a board-certified family physician and author of the book, The Thrifty Patient., doctor, let's begin with what I think is one of the cornerstones for many people when it comes to their health care, and that is the annual physical exam,

which you believe is not necessary, but the recommendation for a yearly physical goes back way back. I mean... Decades. It's kind of like seeing your dentist every six months. And I asked them, I think that's been hundreds of years at least, or a hundred years at least, for dentists. And they just said, well, it's because it seems like a reasonable thing. Who would question that? And yet you say that perhaps that's not necessary.

Yes, at least for the last few decades. Recent article, as recent as 2007 said this. 2002 said this. There's no medical evidence that saves lives, and it makes sense. We don't bring our car in just because we want to bring it in to get a checkup, so why would a checkup just out of the blue make any sense either? And yet, insurance companies still will pay for your one free annual physical? I think it's a benefit, and if you can use it, you should certainly use it. However, a lot of evidence of 1 in 12 visits, it turns out, are for physicals, and frankly, there's no proof it saves lives, and it's worth its worthier time or money. I guess it's just people think, well, if there's something early, you'll catch it.

You'll find it early on in a physical that if we wait till symptoms show up, then it might be too late. Yes. And so I think the difference is what times might you seek to get a physical. And so certainly places like Ontario, Canada, they've actually gotten rid of the physical, but for people between 18 and 64, what they offer is called a personalized interview. And they see what risk factors you're at, what things you're at risk for, and should bring you in for a physical. So absolutely true.

Maybe not getting an annual physical, but being mindful of certain milestones in your life might be important to see a doctor. Things like what? Your age. I think certainly at age 21, 40, 50, and 65, important screening tests come due at that point. If you have no family history of any illnesses, then you don't need to see anyone sooner. But if you have those age points, you should be able to see a doctor then. But otherwise, if you feel okay, you should just leave it alone and just not worry

about it? In general, if you have no family history of diabetes, heart disease, you should just leave it alone and just not worry about it? In general, if you have no family history of diabetes, heart disease, you don't take cholesterol medicines for anything, the keys are, number one, on your birthday, check your blood pressure and your body mass index. Make sure those numbers are normal. Check a website called healthfinder.gov and see what you're due for. But in general, eating healthy, maintaining a healthy weight and exercise are really critical to staying healthy. So yes, if you're otherwise healthy and well, you may not need an annual physical. Do you find, though, as a practicing physician, that people may not be leading such a healthy life

and they come to you to maybe fix that with a pill? Absolutely true. Unfortunately, if they come to my practice will be disappointed because i'll talk about the unsexy things of moving 10 000 steps per day um removing eliminating a soda a day because there are no quick fixes despite all the hype it really is as boring as eating less and moving more and that's been shown to actually increase lifespan by quite a few years just those simple things? Simple things like five servings of fruits and vegetables,

don't smoke, if you drink, do it in moderation, and exercise at least 30 minutes a day. Sounds not to be very earth-shattering, but turns out they've done some research and people extend their lives by a few years. It is discouraging, though, when you hear about people or you know people who seem to be leading a fairly healthy lifestyle, and yet at an early age, they get cancer,

something happens, and they die at a fairly young age. Yes, that's true. So we as doctors have things we can do, hence the importance of certain ages you should see a doctor. Age 21 to screen for cervical cancer for women, age 40 for cholesterol and blood sugar screening for both men and women, age 50 for both men and women for colon cancer screening, and age 65 for osteoporosis for women. And those ages you probably should see a doctor for a physical and to see what things you need to be screened at. Based on your risk factors at that point, your doctor may want to see you every year at that point. But prior to those ages, particularly under age 40, most of us don't need physicals, but certainly at ages 40, 50, and 65, we must check in with a doctor.

When I go to the doctor for a physical, it doesn't seem to be as, I don't know, as thorough or intense as I remember physicals when I was a kid. You know, it turns out a lot of physicals back when I was growing up too, we did a lot of tests. We did chest x-rays for smokers. We did urine tests and it pans out last probably 20 years or so. A lot of these tests we did thinking we were doing something actually had no value scientifically. So a lot of those things aren't necessary anymore. So a lot of it is asking patients during a physical what your risk factors for certain illnesses and cancers might be, taking a look at your blood pressure, a number one cause of death is heart disease, and that's a silent killer,

and checking your body mass index. So most of my times if patients see me for a physical, it's to remind them to get the important screening test done for cancer, get some blood work if they need it, and more importantly, a big discussion about lifestyle changes, maintaining a healthy weight, and eating healthy. Isn't, though, a lot of the reason that people go to the doctor when they're not sick is to be reassured that they're not sick? Absolutely, and I think for those patients who absolutely feel that an annual physical

helps them stay motivated, helps them stay focused on what they need to do to stay healthy and well for another year, I think that's an absolutely great thing to do, and certainly I welcome it. However, for those of us who think there's medical evidence that it saves lives, the answer is no. That caveat is, what I tell all my patients is, on your birthday, check to see if you're that year they need to see a doctor at 21, 40, 50, or 65. And those who have a family history of diseases they're not sure about, definitely talk to your doctor and see,

A, do you need to be tested? And B, how often would your doctor like to check on you? It seems like, I guess, people think that if they're doing something, then they're actually doing something. Yes. I think the key about annual physicals is if you feel like you're actively doing something, to see a doctor, make sure you get an evaluation, kind of your overall health status. I think it's a wonderful thing. And from patients who actually find that helps them stay motivated for the following year, please continue. For those who just wonder, the minimum I'd say is on your

birthdays, check your blood pressure, check your body mass index, ask yourself if you're eating enough fruits and veggies, you know, five servings a day typically, and moderate exercise, 30 minutes a day can be broken up throughout the day. And if you maintain a body mass index under 30, which is under obesity, I think that's a great start. I'm speaking with Dr. Davis Liu. He is a family physician and author of the book, The Thrifty Patient. So, Dr. Liu, when people get sick as they age, when they get diagnosed with something terrible like cancer or serious heart disease or diabetes, something, would a trip to the doctor earlier maybe have caught it sooner?

Or if there are no symptoms, you're unlikely to catch it either? Great question. So for illnesses like diabetes, which are becoming more common as we get older, in fact, one in four adults over age 65, it turns out having been overweight or obese, body mass is over 30. That can get caught sooner, so there's some things you can be done sooner. For certain cancers like colon cancer, breast cancer, cervical cancer, there are tests we can do, so I encourage patients to be screened at age 40 and 50 for those. But unfortunately, it turns out some cancers there is no test for,

and there's no way a doctor would have picked it up. That being said, if you ever have symptoms of anything, don't let it wait too long. Usually, most things improve within two to three weeks. If things don't seem to be improving, check a doctor and see what things they may have to come up with. So what's the difference between the normal aches and pains of life and maybe getting older versus something that's really worth going to see the doctor for? Great question. So symptoms that don't make sense. One of the biggest worries I have when I talk to patients is when I say,

how have you been? They say, great. And I've asked them, have you lost weight? They go, yes, I have. And I say, how did you do that? They go, I don't know. So any unexplained symptoms that don't make sense, like weight loss unexplained would be one thing. In terms of joint pains or arthritis pains, things like that, in general,

typical aches and pains we get as we get older generally get better in the morning when we get up, maybe a little stiffness for the first hour as we warm up. But by the end of the day, they tend to get getting better, and by nighttime, they kind of can get worse. But then when you go to bed and get up the next morning, it gets better. So joint pains that tend to get worse as the day goes on, but then better with rest, generally are more aches and pains we get as we get older. Things that might be more worrisome are joint pains you have with fever or weight loss or swelling that seems continuous and not improving on its own. Hey, everyone.

Join me, Megan Rinks. And me, Melissa Demonts, for Don't Blame Me, But Am I Wrong? Each week, we deliver four fun-filled shows. In Don't Blame Me, we tackle our listeners' dilemmas with hilariously honest advice. Then we have But Am I Wrong?, which is for the listeners that didn't take our advice. Plus, we share our hot takes on current events. Then tune in to see you next Tuesday for our listener poll results from But Am I Wrong. And finally, wrap up your week with Fisting Friday, where we catch up and talk all things pop culture.

Listen to Don't Blame Me, But Am I Wrong on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Do you love Disney? Then you are going to love our hit podcast, Disney Countdown. I'm Megan, the Magical Millennial. And I'm the Dapper Danielle. On every episode of our fun and family-friendly show,

we count down our top 10 lists of all things Disney. There is nothing we don't cover. We are famous for rabbit holes, Disney themed games, and fun facts you didn't know you needed, but you definitely need in your life. So if you're looking for a healthy dose of Disney magic, check out Disney Countdown wherever you get your podcasts. When you talk to patients about leading a healthy life and all, how big a factor, because we hear it's a big factor, how big a factor do you see stress as being? I think stress can be healthy when it's perceived

the correct way. Stress, we all need a little bit of stress in our lives. It just becomes when it's not in balance with the rest of our lives. And when we find imbalance with stress, it turns out we have different habits. Most of us respond in three different ways with stress. We have emotional changes, behavioral changes, or physical changes. I'll give you an example. One of the things that stress can do, actually, is for behavior changes when people drink more, or they smoke more, or they avoid exercise because they don't have time. So that's one example of how stress can impact our lives because it changes the behavior. So stress can play a role, but I've seen plenty of people also cope with stress and make them be better.

The question is, how do we balance stress of life and do that in a healthy way? What are the things that if you could scream them from the mountaintop that you wish people would do? Well, you and I were talking the other day about how, you know, the Fountain of Youth, and you said, well, I'll let you repeat what you said. Well, the Fountain of Youth is something I've discovered the last, you know, 15 years I've been in practice. It turns out no one wants the Fountain of Youth because it's incredibly hard. It is a magic pill everyone asks me for.

It's exercise. And it turns out I've got patients in their 80s who do fabulous. In fact, they're playing golf people in their 60s because no one else can keep up with them and beating them. So they're a real inspiration to me. I've got a paratrooper from World War II. He's in his 90s now. He walks six miles a day and does easily 100 push-ups a day. Eas easily beats his doctor on a push-up. So these are my inspiration, and it turns out that is the only thing that keeps people healthy and well and very vibrant. So that's the fountain of youth.

Hard to do, but also the good news, easy to do. You know, I remember talking to someone, and it's always stuck with me. It was a doctor or somebody that I'd interviewed that said that a huge percentage of people who are in nursing homes, rest homes, aren't there because they're really sick so much as that they just can't function. They can't, you know, get the peanut butter jar lid off or they can't, you know, get in and out of a chair. I mean, it's just that they've atrophied into an old person because they didn't stay active. So another really great story of mine, it is debilitation is what you're referring to, and

just getting the basic stuff of work and life done. And one of my patients, I remember many years ago, still in my practice, he came with a walker one day and really looked his age and asked me what I could do, and I could only offer some prescription medications for joint pains. So he thought about it, went home, and then came back six months later without a walker, without a cane. It looked fantastic. And I said, well, what did you do? Because clearly I didn't do anything.

He goes, you know what, I heard what you said. I started exercising, and he loves to trim bonsai trees. And so he did that, and he said, you know what, Dr. Liu, that almost killed me. I tried that for two hours, and that almost killed me, but I stuck with it, rain or shine. And he started adding more time in gardening, and now he's doing great, and he looks fantastic. But when people ask him what he did, he goes, well, I work in the garden four hours a day. And people say, well, I don't want to do that. What else can you get? He goes, that's the only thing I got.

And so, again, a lot of patients inspire me. It is, a lot of times it is we lose function and our ability to move and do things as we get older. So to fight back father time, exercise really pushes that back quite a bit. And yet it is amazing how people who, when they say, you know, they hate to exercise and they hate to work out or they hate to do whatever it is they're going to do, I've never heard anybody do it, go to the gym or go on a walk and come back and say, God, that was horrible. You know, I wish I hadn't done it. Everybody always is thankful that they did it, but they hate doing it. Yeah, that's really what makes us so human, isn't it?

Is that we have an emotional part of our brain and a rational part. And the rational part knows we need to go out and move around. But the emotional part says, well, maybe not today. Today is kind of rainy. Maybe tomorrow. Or maybe not today, because after all, I'm really tired. I deserve a break. And so how do we manage both sides of the brain?

Having a partner exercise with you really helps. Having little tricks like saying, I'm just going for a five-minute walk. And afterwards, if I don't like that five-minute walk, I'll go home because I'm done. But it turns out, to your point, after we get these things done, we get the motivation. Then the emotional part kind of kicks in and goes,

you know what, that five minutes felt pretty good. I wonder how I might continue to do that. One other trick I learned is maybe to record yourself after a great walk that day and goes, you know what? That five minutes felt pretty good. I wonder how I might continue to do that. One other trick I learned is maybe to record yourself after a great walk that day and say, hey, Davis Lou, I just finished a 30-minute walk today. It was a great day. It was sunny, a lot of fresh air. You could see the trees and the squirrels running around. And record that on your phone. So one day when you need to exercise and go, I don't want to, play back that voice and hear about how emotionally

excited you were about that particular exercise and see if you can do that. Well, great. And those are some really practical tips on what to do to stay healthy. Not only things you can do, but maybe some things you don't have to do, like the annual physical that could save you some time and money as well. Dr. Davis Liu is a board-certified family physician, and he is author of the book, The Thrifty Patient. There's a link to his book on Amazon. You can find it on the show notes page for this episode of the podcast, which you can check out on our website, which I would love to have you check out if you haven't already. And the website is somethingyoushouldknow.net. And finally today on the podcast, what makes a person creepy?

It's a question you kind of intuitively know the answer to, but probably not one you think about very often. But there's actually some research that looked into what makes someone a creep. Over 1,300 people were surveyed, and it's widely believed that if you're a clown, a taxidermist, a sex shop owner, or a funeral director, pretty much people are going to think you're a creep, I guess, until you prove otherwise.

There are also some behaviors and nonverbal cues that make someone come across as creepier. Being extremely thin sends that signal. Not looking you in the eye does as well. When people ask to take a picture of you and you don't know them, yeah, you're going to think they're a creep. Watching people before interacting with them tends to make people creepy. When someone asks details about your personal life when you don't know them, that's a pretty clear signal that that's just really creepy.

Displaying too much or too little emotion makes someone creepy. Being older makes a person creepier. And, well, that's kind of age discrimination. But I guess when you're young, people who are very old and look very old can sometimes kind of freak people out or creep people out. And steering the conversation towards sex will pretty much give you the brand of being a creep. And the last question that people in the survey had to answer, and remember this was 1,300 people who were surveyed, do most creepy people know that they're creepy? And 60% said no, which means there's an awful lot of creepy people walking around who have no idea how creepy they are.

And that is something you should know. In this increasingly competitive world of podcasting, it really helps when you share this podcast with someone you know, leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, and subscribe to it on Apple Podcasts. All those things help this podcast and show your support. I'm Micah Ruthers. Thanks for listening today to Something You Should Know. Welcome to the small town of Chinook, where faith runs deep and secrets run deeper. In this new thriller, religion and crime collide when a gruesome murder rocks the isolated Montana community.

Everyone is quick to point their fingers at a drug-addicted teenager, but local deputy Ruth Vogel isn't convinced. She suspects connections to a powerful religious group. Enter federal agent V.B. Loro, who has been investigating a local church for possible criminal activity. The pair form an unlikely partnership to catch the killer, unearthing secrets that leave Ruth torn between her duty to the law, her religious convictions, and her very own family. But something more sinister than murder is afoot, and someone is watching Ruth. Chinook. Starring Kelly Marie Tran and Sanaa Lathan.

Listen to Chinook wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, this is Rob Benedict. And I am Richard Spate. We were both on a little show you might know called Supernatural. It had a pretty good run, 15 seasons, 327 episodes. And though we have seen, of course, every episode many times, we figured, hey, now that we're wrapped, let's watch it all again. And we can't do that alone.

So we're inviting the cast and crew that made the show along for the ride. We've got writers, producers, composers, directors, and we'll of course have some actors on as well, including some certain guys that played some certain pretty iconic brothers. It was kind of a little bit of a left field choice in the best way possible. The note from Kripke was, he's great, we love him, but we're looking for like a really intelligent Duchovny type.'" With 15 seasons to explore, it's going to be the road trip of several lifetimes,

so please join us and subscribe to Supernatural then and now.