An evolutionary theory for why we are lazy and why we no longer want to be.

Forces beyond your control can take away everything you possess except one thing, your freedom to cho [View online]( [Coach Tony]( Coach Tony [@tonystubblebine]( Forces beyond your control can take away everything you possess except one thing, your freedom to choose how you will respond to the situation. ~ Viktor Frankl - - - - - #1. The risk reduction theory for being sedentary. Here’s a potential evolutionary theory for why we may have wanted to be lazy in the past. But, important note, that reason no longer exists. Most people are aware of the health benefits of physical activity. Why then do people so easily fall into sedentary habits? The idea developed here is that sedentary behavior reduces acute mortality risk from physical activity, and was strongly selected in our evolutionary past. However, hunter gatherer populations could not reduce activity indefinitely because of the need to hunt for and gather food. Hence they never experienced low levels of activity that are damaging to health, and no corresponding mechanism avoiding low activity evolved. Source: [An evolutionary perspective on sedentary behavior](. - - - - - #2. An academic definition of purpose. People seem to gravitate toward this [definition from the John Templeton Foundation](. Purpose is a stable and generalized intention to accomplish something that is at once personally meaningful and at the same time leads to productive engagement with some aspect of the world beyond the self. Stable generally refers to time periods in years or decades. Expect your sense of purpose to change in big ways throughout your life. In between big changes, think instead of your purpose as something that develops strength and specificity. The value of a purpose is to live in a way that is congruent to who you are. It’s not to impress other people (although that will often happen as a side effect of being an authentic person working to your strengths and interests). A purpose really blossoms when it grows to include more than yourself. That doesn’t need to be some grandiose “make a dent in the universe” goal. It’s most often your family, community, coworkers. Filed under: [purpose](. - - - - - #3. Test out a sleep story. One of the most successful parts of the [Calm app](** is a feature to help you fall asleep, sleep stories. I just realized that those stories are often also available on YouTube, which means you can try them very easily. For example, [try this one]( and let me know if it helps you fall asleep. ** I am a shareholder. - - - - - Tips or feedback? [Send me a response on Twitter.]( Don’t miss out on the other issues by Coach Tony [Become a member for $5 per month]( Did you enjoy this issue? [Yes]( [No]( [Coach Tony]( Coach Tony [@tonystubblebine]( Tips, inspirations, and knowledge on productivity, happiness, health, and making an impact on our world. Official email of the Better Humans publication on Medium. (@bttrhumans) You can manage your subscription [here](. In order to unsubscribe, click [here](. If you were forwarded this newsletter and you like it, you can subscribe [here](. Created with [Revue by Twitter](.