Tim Ferriss - 5-Bullet Friday — May 5, 2023

Hi All!

Here is your weekly dose of 5-Bullet Friday, a list of what I’m pondering and exploring. Feel free to forward this along to friends.

What I’m listening to

“Heartstrings” (YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music) by Russell Malone.

What I’m using for lower-back pain

​Acumobility Massage Ball. Yes, this model looks like a pink nipple. The basics: I’m lying on the ground on my back and placing the nub where I am sorest on my “QL” (quadratus lumborum). Starting with my right side, I would then bring my right knee towards my chest, followed by extending the same leg straight and back to resting position. Repeat this motion, almost like a single-leg high march from the back, for 10 repetitions. Then switch sides. This is all easiest to follow by watching this short video. Personally, I’m placing the nub just above the crest of my hip, but you’ll find your most sensitive spot. From this page: “In order to palpate the muscle, one needs to place the fingers above the posterior iliac crest at the level of the hip.” Special thanks to Eric Cressey for the recommendation and for making the above short video for you fine subscribers.

App I’m loving

Want an incredible rotating view of the QL or any other muscle you can imagine? Check out the Essential Anatomy 5 app for iOS and Android (note: some reviewers report the app crashing on Android). Monster drummer Dave Elitch shared this with me, and I’ve been nerding out ever since. For a taste of its capabilities, check out this short YouTube tutorial.

​​Article I’m reading

“Life After Death: the living coffin.” The idea of my corpse being sealed inside a coffin never sat well with me. I much preferred the idea of being cremated or, better still, being quickly and easily absorbed by the earth, feeding the soil and ecosystems that fed me during my lifetime. This is a possible step in that direction.

Poem I’m pondering

If I could sink my teeth into the whole earth
And actually taste it,
I’d be happier for a moment…
But I don’t always want to be happy.
To be unhappy now and then
Is part of being natural.
Not all days are sunny,
And when rain is scarce, we pray for it.
And so I take unhappiness with happiness
Naturally, just as I don’t marvel
That there are mountains and plains
And that there are rocks and grass…
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What matters is to be natural and calm
In happiness and in unhappiness,
To feel as if feeling were seeing,
To think as if thinking were walking,
And to remember, when death comes, that each day dies,
And the sunset is beautiful, and so is the night that remains…
That’s how it is and how I want it to be…
— Fernando Pessoa ​
​(Click here to share an excerpt on Twitter.)
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You can complement this edition of 5-Bullet Friday with my interview with Dr. BJ Miller, who has helped thousands of people through hospice and end-of-life care, and my short video on hamstring exercises for lower-back pain.
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And, as always, please give me feedback on Twitter. Which bullet above is your favorite? What do you want more or less of? Other suggestions? Please let me know. Just send a tweet to @tferriss and put #5BulletFriday at the end so I can find it.
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Have a wonderful weekend, all.
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Much love to you and yours,
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Tim

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