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8 Simple Hacks to Improve Your Health

2023-09-22 · Long video (solo, talking head or whiteboard) · Ali · recording, 13:22 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Health, sleep and habits · mode: List of tips or lessons · tags: Evidence-based framing, His medical past, His own numbers, Sponsor segment present

Ali, who calls health the most important area of life, shares eight simple health hacks he uses to keep it on autopilot: the 3-2-1 sleep method, 10,000 steps with a desk treadmill, meditation, DEXA scans every six months, a morning protein shake, stretching routines, a Dosette box for pills and a simple skincare routine.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Why health matters and how he applies productivity to it

  • ★★ Ali calls health arguably the single most important area of life: without it you cannot enjoy money, career, relationships or hobbies, yet it is often the first thing to go when life gets busy. — 00:00:00
  • ★★ Ali has been applying the principles of productivity to his health: reading health books, working with an online health coach and interviewing experts on his podcast about physical, mental and emotional health. — 00:00:29 · Mental health
  • ★ According to the CDC, Ali says, one in three adults in the US report not getting enough sleep. — 00:00:58
  • ★★★ For sleep Ali uses the 3-2-1 method from his online fitness coach Dan Go: stop eating three hours before sleep, stop drinking liquids two hours before, and cut out screens one hour before. — 00:00:58

00:01:00 — The 3-2-1 method for sleep; no phone in bed, a Kindle and fiction

  • ★★ Ali cites studies linking eating within three hours of bedtime to waking at night, drinking any fluid, even water, one to two hours before sleep to lower sleep quality, and a bright screen in the last hour to worse sleep. — 00:01:27
  • ★★ Ali tries not to use his phone in bed and keeps a Kindle and a physical book on his bedside table; he cites a study showing a Kindle's backlight does not affect sleep very much. — 00:01:56 · Kindle
  • ★★ Ali sleeps better reading fiction than nonfiction in bed: fiction helps his brain switch off, while nonfiction makes him think about his business, highlight and take notes. — 00:01:56

00:02:26 — 10,000 steps: the treadmill desk, walking calls, walking to dinner

  • ★★ Ali's 2020 step graph shows a big dip in August 2020, when he first took a break from his full-time job as a doctor and sat at his desk all day making YouTube videos; his body weight went up sharply at the same time. — 00:02:26
  • ★★ Ali cites a meta-analysis of 15 studies showing that more steps per day were associated with a progressively lower risk of all-cause mortality. — 00:02:55
  • ★★ Ali cites a study in which 10,000 steps a day significantly lowered anxiety, depression, anger, fatigue, confusion and total mood distress in sedentary, overweight people. — 00:02:55
  • ★★ Ali cites a study finding that for every 500 extra steps a day, the risk of cardiovascular disease falls by about 6%. — 00:02:55
  • ★★★ The single best thing Ali found for reaching 10,000 steps a day is a treadmill under his standing desk, the WalkingPad C2, which cost about $300; he has no relationship with the maker and recommends it. — 00:03:24
  • ★★ In a few months Ali has used his desk treadmill 148 times and walked 255 km; on the day of filming his Apple Watch showed about 5,000 steps without his really leaving the house. — 00:03:24 · Apple Watch
  • ★★ To get more steps Ali takes Zoom calls while walking and walks to dinner when it is within about 40 minutes, listening to a podcast; 40 minutes there and back gets him to about 10,000 steps. — 00:03:53 · Zoom
  • ★★ Ali tracks his steps with his Apple Watch, but says any phone's step counter will do; since aiming consciously for 10,000 steps a day, his daily count has gone up. — 00:03:53 · Apple Watch

00:04:22 — Elevated stress markers and the evidence for meditation

  • ★★★ Blood tests earlier in 2023 showed Ali elevated stress markers, really bad for his age, though he does not feel stressed; the doctor, noting everyone tells him to take a break, said he should meditate more. — 00:04:22
  • ★★ Ali expected running his own business to give him more free time than medicine, but it gave him a lot less; he agrees with the saying that entrepreneurs work 60 hours a week to avoid working 40. — 00:04:52
  • ★★ Ali cites studies showing meditation lowers blood pressure, cortisol, heart rate and the inflammation marker cytokines, and can raise self-compassion, attention and focus: a mountain of evidence that it is good for you. — 00:05:21

00:05:40 — Sponsor read

  • ★★ Each morning, after a hot-then-cold shower and before journaling and coffee, Ali does a five-to-ten-minute meditation, which connects him to the here and now as a moment of respite before the day. — 00:05:50
  • ★★★ Ali recommends a DEXA scan, a full-body X-ray showing how much muscle and fat you have and where; about half the friends he recommended it to have had one and called it game-changing. — 00:06:49

00:06:58 — DEXA scans every six months

  • ★★ A DEXA scan is somewhat expensive, Ali says: about 120, depending on where you go. — 00:07:18
  • ★★ Ali thinks a DEXA scan is absolutely worth it: any money you spend on your health that changes your behaviour pays dividends later, though it depends on your disposable income. — 00:07:18
  • ★★ Ali's first DEXA scan, about a year and a half ago, showed 25% body fat, mostly visceral fat in the abdomen, the kind most linked with cardiovascular disease, strokes and diabetes; he now has one about every six months. — 00:07:47
  • ★★ Six months after his first DEXA scan Ali had lost about 2 kg of muscle and only 1 kg of fat, from too little protein and exercise; after a new plan, six months later he had gained 1.5 kg of muscle and lost 1.5 kg of fat. — 00:08:18
  • ★★★ Ali calls a DEXA scan every six months the most worthwhile health expense he has made, more accurate than gym body-fat scales; in the UK he uses BodyScan, with sites around London. — 00:08:48 · London
  • ★★ Ali says there is little scientific consensus on protein needs: the WHO says 0.83 grams per kilogram of body weight a day, but most trainers and fitness experts he has spoken to say that is nowhere near enough to build muscle. — 00:08:48

00:09:06 — Automating protein intake with a morning shake

  • ★★★ Ali aims for about 1.5 to 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight; on his coach Dan Go's advice he automates it with a protein shake every morning, 40 to 50 grams, then about 30 grams at lunch and at dinner. — 00:09:36
  • ★★ Ali's morning shake is Huel Black (400 calories, 40 grams of protein) or, on the go, Optimum Nutrition's pre-made shake (50 grams of protein, 300 calories); he has no affiliate link with either, though Huel sponsors other videos of his. — 00:10:05
  • ★★ Ali cites studies showing a baseline of flexibility and mobility reduces the risk of injury when exercising, and a meta-analysis finding that stretching reduced arterial stiffness, heart rate and blood pressure in middle-aged and older adults. — 00:10:34

00:10:45 — Stretching: YouTube routines and the Pliability app

  • ★★ One of two ways of stretching that have worked for Ali is putting on a YouTube stretching routine; his favourite channel is Juice and Toya, especially for tight hamstrings and hip flexors. — 00:11:03
  • ★★ Ali also uses the app Pliability, which gives a daily stretching routine: 20 minutes of passive static stretches each evening on his yoga mat that also help him switch his mind off. — 00:11:33
  • ★★ Ali takes the Heights Smart Supplement and Smart Probiotic, and finasteride and minoxidil for his hair loss. — 00:12:02
  • ★★ Ali was inconsistent with his pills until he bought a Dosette box, the kind he gave patients as a doctor; filling it once a week keeps him consistent, though he still sometimes forgets. — 00:12:02 · Amazon

00:12:12 — A Dosette box for supplements and pills

  • ★★ Ali's skincare routine uses just three products, broadly what the dermatologists he has talked to recommend. — 00:12:42

00:13:03 — His evidence-based skincare routine; sign-off

In the description and comments

  • ★★ Ali Abdaal (channel): The channel says CT scans carry a radiation risk, but a DEXA scan uses far less radiation, equivalent to a few days of natural background radiation. — creator comment
  • ★★ Ali Abdaal (channel): The channel says finasteride can reduce testosterone and sex drive as a side effect. — creator comment
  • ★★ Ali Abdaal (channel): The channel says Feel-Good Productivity comes out on 28 December 2023 in India, the same date as in the rest of the world. — creator comment · Feel-Good Productivity (book)
  • ★★ Ali Abdaal (channel): Asked about a Kindle edition of Feel-Good Productivity in Poland, the channel says it is working on the Poland deal. — creator comment · Feel-Good Productivity (book), Kindle
  • ★★ Ali Abdaal (channel): Asked to bring back the video "How to study for exams - an evidence based masterclass", the channel says it is coming soon. — creator comment
  • ★ Ali Abdaal (channel): The channel says the two watches Ali wears are an Apple Watch and a Whoop. — creator comment · Apple Watch
  • ★ Ali Abdaal (channel): Asked whether Ali's voice is in a Huel advert, the channel says yes. — creator comment

Threads in this video

Where the stories that moved here went next

Mentioned

Central: 10,000 steps a day · 3-2-1 method · DEXA scan · Dosette box · meditation · WalkingPad C2

Also: People: Dan Go

Organizations: Amazon · BodyScan · Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · Heights · Juice and Toya · Lululemon · Optimum Nutrition · World Health Organization

Concepts: cardiovascular disease · Mental health

Places: London

Products: Apple Watch · Finasteride · Headspace · Huel · Kindle · Minoxidil · Pliability · Zoom

Only in the description or credits: Feel-Good Productivity (book) · India · Poland · Whoop

Also centred on WalkingPad C2: My Most Productive Desk Setup Ever

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