#10 - When a rabbit is just a rabbit
Aka how preparing for the worst may not always be the winning strategy
Spotlight
In our previous edition, we talked about stepping out of our comfort zone, one baby step at a time. Today we talk about why preparing for the worst might not always be the best solution.
Rookie mistakes and scary ladies
It was 9 pm on a Wednesday, one of the hottest days of the year. Nick and I were on the sofa, finally winding down after a long day of meetings and firefighting.
Almost mindlessly, I opened my email.
What I saw sent me on a downward spiral that culminated in a strangely vivid dream of a lady running after me with a piece of paper clutched in her hand, shouting at me to stop - waking me up at 5 am.
A startup horror story
The email was from one of our suppliers. It was an invoice for a rendered service. Nothing strange there, we were expecting to be billed.
The issue was the amount - more than double the price agreed upon (which was already a steep one to start with).
I almost fell of the sofa, and kept looking at the phone in horror for a few minutes, just repeating “No, it can’t be” to an extremely confused Nick.
When I managed to explain what happened, Nick very rationally concluded that there must have been a mistake: we had all the correspondence in writing, including the agreed fees.
I knew he was most certainly right, but there was a niggling thought I couldn’t shake
What if he isn’t? What if they say they had to do more work than expected and now we need to cough up an eye-watering amount of money?
When resources are tight, an unexpected invoice can be more unsettling than a Hitchcock movie. And when you’re walking the very thin line of making it or breaking it, it can feel like everything is about to break you.
Luckily for us, Nick was right and everything was sorted with a quick apology and a swiftly issued correct invoice. But this made me think about how we approach situations like these and what it does to our health.
Not all rabbits are good rabbits
The saying:
Hope for the best, prepare for the worst
has a wealth of advantages, even in evolutionary terms (it’s almost always better to think that the noise you hear in the darkness of your local park at night is not that of a rabbit but of something potentially more dangerous, because that can be a costly mistake. Also, not all rabbits are good rabbits.)
Yet the constant worry that comes from bracing at all times comes at a price too.
Excessive worry has been associated with hypertension, increased blood pressure, and coronary heart disease. Chronic stress can also increase risk of cardiovascular diseases as well as negatively impact our immune response and mental health.
Context is your friend
So what do we do?
The context around us can help us decide whether it’s wiser to worry or have a more optimistic take. If you’re in the forest, on your own at night (first of all, why are you there? Go home, now!), it’s better to hope for the best and prepare for the worst.
If you’re in the comfort of your home, battling what is most likely a bureaucratic error, leaning towards optimism can save you lots of unnecessary stress.
Sometimes a rabbit is just a rabbit and a mistake is just a mistake - pre-emptively worrying is not always the best solution.
In the news
Ever thought about combining a sweat session with some positive affirmations? A neuroscientist swears by it - bonus: you’ll probably end up being less out of breath next time you take the stairs!
If you’re like me (and most of the population, really) you’re no stranger to low back pain. A team of health professionals seems to have found a rather simple solution: walking.
Rules around stretching giving you a headache? Experts recommend static (reaching and holding a position) then dynamic (repetitive movements to warm-up specific muscles) stretching but only after a light warm up of 5-10 minutes of walking/cycling/jogging.
Gem of the week (and why you should care)
Sleep problems are the bane of our lives, especially after hitting a certain age (I'll let you decide what age that is). So these new research findings might cheer you up: if you want to sleep for longer, try incorporating 3-minute resistance exercise breaks (e.g. squats, knee raises) throughout your evening, ideally every 30 minutes over a 4-hour period.
The study indicates that these breaks may add almost half hour of sleep to your night. Worth a try if you ask me…
That’s all, folks.
Like what you see? Show us some love and let us know you enjoyed this - it matters more than you think.
Just found this newsletter? Hit the subscribe button and join us for more discussions around exercise!
Thanks for reading this fourth edition and see you next week!
Sonia Ponzo
CEO and Founder at Outset Wellness