Hello friends! This is Smorgasbord, a self-service buffet of ideas—the value hot dog of newsletters.
It’s the day after the 4th of July, so happy Independence Day to my fellow Americans and happy Friday to the rest of you. The Cantu Clan partied until late (10:30 PM) last night at an indoor backyard barbeque at WestWorld of Scottsdale, a multi-use event center that (thank you, baby Jesus) has AC. We feasted on burgers, brisket, hot dogs, potato salad, watermelon, apple cobbler, and soft-serve ice cream. They also had mutton busting and bull riders as part of the entertainment. To close the night, a fireworks show that lasted twenty minutes—it was amazing. Here’s the grand finale:
Alright, let’s get on with it.
Changing the timeline
I’ve been lamenting how tight my clothes fit lately, and I know damn well why that is. Six months into 40, I can already see how easily I can get deconditioned if I stop working out, how easy it is for the pounds to accumulate, and how much more difficult it is to get rid of them. Now and again, I start rationalizing why better habits lead to a better quality of life as if I don’t already know that.
Imagine my surprise when I stopped eating after dinner, went to bed at a decent time, and woke up refreshed versus snacking into the night, falling asleep on the couch, and dragging myself to bed at midnight.
Setting specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound goals is SMART. My problem is that I go back to what I was doing before I set the goals instead of maintaining those behaviors. Once the goal is achieved, there is nothing to do. Once I ran my first and last half-marathon, I decided I was done with running.
This week, I’ve been re-listening to a few podcasts where Peter Attia, MD, talks about two concepts that caught my attention. The first one, the Centenarian Decathlon, is a list of ten activities Dr. Attia’s patients choose they want to be able to do in, and this is the second concept, their marginal decade, that is, the last decade of their lives. How you want to live during your last decade of life determines how you need to train now.
This resonates with me since I’m looking at the next four decades of my life (God willing) and how those will pan out. If I reach 80, my kids will be in their 40s, and hopefully, grandchildren will be in the picture. Things we take for granted while we’re young, like being able to pick up a toddler from the floor or a baby out of a crib or putting your luggage in the overhead compartment of a plane, may be feats of strength down the road.
So, I’ve been trying to change my timeline and consider good habits something I need to sustain for the next four decades. I owe this to Diana and the kids, and really, I owe it to myself to do more of the things I would like to do—like being more active with the kids. Have you felt like this? Do you need to nurture good habits? Would you like some accountability? Let me know in the comments, or send me a DM.
Slow is smooth, smooth is fast
This phrase, commonly used by the Navy SEALS, emphasizes the importance of taking time to do things carefully and methodically rather than rushing and making mistakes. It also happens to be one of Connor McGregor’s tattoos.
McGregor has won 22 fights and lost only 6 in his UFC career. He’s a great fighter, there’s no doubt about it. He’s also a very unpleasant human being. He’s a cocky, trash-talking, dramatic fighter, which makes him good at selling tickets to his fights. I admit that watching him lose to Nate Diaz and Khabib Nurmagomedov via submission after all the trash-talking was highly satisfying.
Back to slow is smooth, smooth is fast; I have contemplated this the whole week. I logged two thirty-minute rowing sessions on Tuesday and Thursday, and I was thinking about my pace a lot, aiming to be as efficient as possible with every stroke. There’s a display option that shows a force curve—a graph showing the force applied to the machine over time. The larger the area under the curve, the more power you’ve put into the machine, and the lower your split will be. Ideally, it would look like this:
I keep a rate of 13 strokes per minute, which means I “draw” almost 400 of these in 30 minutes. If they dip at the beginning or the end, or they end up slightly flat, I know that wasn’t a great stroke. The good news is that there’s one more coming in a few seconds, and I can try to correct my form. It’s not about being fast; it’s about being smooth. Somehow, this phrase makes me think of flow, where one's ability and capability converge and things seem effortless.
Aperol Spritz
According to this article, the Aperol Spritz is the most popular cocktail in the USA, with 22 states ranking it as their favorite. I had my first Aperol Spritz about ten years ago when Diana and I were in Italy for our honeymoon. Someone had told us that we should do “aperitivo.” Its literal translation is to open, in this case, your stomach, before dinner. The closest thing I could compare it to would be happy hour. This little bar in Venice gave you a small plate of food with each drink—olives, meats, cheeses, and bread. Ah, the memories.
If you’ve never had Aperol, it tastes like orange with vanilla, herbal, and woody notes. It’s pleasantly bittersweet, and some may say salty. Prosecco, also part of the Aperol Spritz, is an Italian sparkling white wine that usually has citrus, green apple, and pear notes with a floral hint. Together, they make for a bubbly, citrusy, sweet libation, perfect for summer.
Making an Aperol Spritz is as easy as 1, 2, 3:
One (1) oz club soda
Two (2) oz Aperol
Three (3) oz Prosecco
Fill a wine glass with ice (you can use any glass, but it’s typically served in wine glasses), add the Aperol and the Prosecco, and top with the club soda. For garnish, you can use an orange wedge.
Pro tip: I usually get half bottles of Prosecco (375ml), slightly over 12 ounces. That way, I can make four cocktails without the Prosecco going flat, which you run the risk of if you have a larger bottle and don’t use all of it. And let’s face it, the bubbles are crucial in this drink.
Cheers!
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Sobremesa
What’s the one thing you want to be able to do in your 80s?
Is there a dimension of your life where you’d want to apply slow is smooth, smooth is fast?
What’s your favorite snack + drink combination?
P.S. In case you missed it, I wrote about the weekend I took care of my kids by myself. Have a lovely weekend!
-W
James and I talk all the time about wanting to walk the Camino in our 60s-70s, if that counts!
It'd be great if I could still dance at 80!