I took advantage of a sunny break between welcomed rains this morning to run outdoors. I am now alternating quarter-mile “sprints”–running as fast as I can while maintaining good form, which is approximately jogging for a true runner–with brisk walks, both because I have been convinced I need more anaerobic workout time and because the body is so durn adaptable; if I don’t change my routine, it loses efficacy.

You can perhaps imagine my route from its description: sprint from home to the ocean; walk to the Point; sprint to the eucalyptus grove; walk around Moran Lake; sprint from the end of that path to the ocean; walk along the shore to the end of my street; sprint home. Post rain, a clot of egrets found a buffet in the rehydrated bottom of that lake, which is more like a swampy lagoon. Mostly the route was filled with surfers and dog-walkers.

Adding anaerobic exercise is one of a long list of changes associated with my ongoing conversion to Max Lugavere’s Genius Plan, a “diet” optimized for brain function which specifies much more than food. Not only do I need a certain amount and a certain type of exercise to achieve results, but I also have to sleep properly and fast regularly.

Had I visited Delphi a few months ago and learned that before the end of the year I would have given up most grains and all oils other than olive and avocado, and would be fasting 12 to 16 hours each day, my smug dismissal of the usefulness of Oracles would have remained intact. Yet here I am.

My husband would credit, or blame, depending on how he is feeling about how these changes affect his life, a 30%-off promotion by our local independent bookseller. The promotion was limited to one non-fiction book, so I arrived with two choices in mind, neither of which had yet been released. This is a common problem for book review readers. I browsed the nonfiction section and chose Lugavere’s Genius Foods.

Mere happenstance?

For the past couple of years I have been making lifestyle changes based on reading books about the microbiome, and the first thing I did when I picked up Genius Foods was to check the index to ensure the MB was mentioned. Recently I had been tiring of the brain fog creeping through my head: groping-for-a-noun gaps, missing-the-obvious moments, careful procedures to ensure the range is turned off and the door locked. Physiology has always been a keen interest, and this book delves into blood chemistry and metabolism quite deeply for a work hoping to appeal widely. In short, I have been preparing to read this book since before it was written.

That many of my life choices, even the trivial ones, were a direct result of my prior interests and pursuits may seem less than insightful, but I certainly made some impulsive decisions as well. More notably, some choices I declined–study abroad, public-speaker for non-profit, VP of manufacturing–were rejected because they did not fit into my self-image. I’m not the sort of person who does that. 

Though pursuing one’s interests can be limiting, one of the tenets of the Genius Plan is regularly stepping out of one’s comfort zone in ways large and small. Try it! It’s a health booster!