Getting Unhooked: A Meditation on Japanese Extreme Minimalism
On Monday, I drove from Southeastern Idaho to the city of Seattle and on to my PNW home base to begin my summer residency.
As you know, if you’ve been reading this blog, I have a One Hit Wonder of getting 15,000 steps per day, on average. I started this trip in the Southeast US, went to Oklahoma, then on to Colorado, and finally spent two days driving to get back to the PNW.
During those four days of drive time, I averaged a little over 5,350 steps per day.
That created a roughly 38,000-step deficiency relative to my goal of averaging 15,000 per day. I made up for some of this by having three days of 20,000-plus steps before leaving my home base in the Southeast, but when the day started yesterday, I was still behind.
I knew this while driving on Monday and thought to myself:
“Hey, you don’t have anything too pressing to do when you get back, so why not use Tuesday to walk all day?”
And that’s kind of what I did.
But I spent far less time walking yesterday than my mind was telling me I could while I was driving.
You see, there’s this thing called stamina and endurance that you need to build up when engaging in athletic feats. I quickly realized yesterday that I did not want to walk the 12 hours I thought I could while sitting comfortably behind the wheel. No, I decided to cap it at 30,000 steps.
And I’m glad I did.
Today, I’ve already gone for a long walk and have over 5,300 steps banked. My body feels good. I feel rested and recharged, and I’ll continue walking throughout the day. Another 24,700 steps should be no problem.
So why am I doing this besides trying to make up for that step deficiency from the cross-country drive?
Good question.
I’m not completely sure, but I think it has something to do with a practice I heard about this morning. Evidently, it’s a thing called Japanese Extreme Minimalism.
What is Japanese Extreme Minimalism?
Well, I watched a short video on it and then did a little internet searching, so I am not an expert by any stretch of the imagination. But here are what seem to be some of its essential components:
It is a radical lifestyle in which you remove material possessions down to the bare necessities. Check. I have already been practicing this to a degree.
The goal is to liberate the mind, reduce stress, and achieve mobility and inner peace. Check. I am on board for those outcomes and have been pursuing them, with some success, in my own life.
You focus on choosing rather than throwing away items. Ah yes. If you recall, I wrote about this in terms of how Keith Richards described selecting songs for an album. First choose the songs that absolutely must stay, then fill in the gaps if needed. I love that idea.
You focus on creating negative space rather than filling every nook and cranny with stuff. Evidently, this produces a sense of tranquility. I can dig it.
It is a practice that increases adaptability and resilience. It appears to have roots in Zen Buddhism and Taoism, but also developed for practical reasons, such as reducing injuries from falling objects during earthquakes.
Oh yes, there are earthquakes in the US too, all over the place, as I have learned. But perhaps only the West Coast experiences anything even somewhat close to what they do in Japan.
But what does this have to do with walking 30,000 steps or more?
You see, I am moving from simply focusing on stripping away distractions and choosing material possessions to applying this concept to my day-to-day existence.
And I am starting slowly, deliberately, and I think sustainably.
It’s about time and how it is used.
Here is a quick recap of my day yesterday:
Woke up around 4:30am without an alarm.
Had coffee and water, made my bed, and caught up on tracking my FIRE Metrics That Matter for May.
Wrote and posted my daily blog article.
Took three long walks throughout the day, ultimately reaching 30,000 steps.
Scheduled an important self-care appointment for next week.
Had a good conversation with a loved one.
Continued brainstorming ideas that had emerged during my cross-country drive, including future blog topics and a few thoughts about finances and investing.
Ate one simple, high-protein, high-fiber meal using food I already had in the house.
Spent no money beyond bills I had already paid.
Was ready for bed by sunset and asleep shortly thereafter.
Along the way, something unexpected happened. During my walks, I found myself having several fun and friendly interactions with people in the neighborhood. That is somewhat unusual around here, and even more unusual for me because I was often the one initiating the conversation.
When I looked back on the day, it struck me as a well-lived one.
I had expected to start a new One Hit Wonder this week, but I’m not sure that will happen.
You see, I realized I already have enough to do.
Here are my true and existing One Hit Wonders already in place:
Daily tracking of finances and health metrics. I do this religiously. Yes, I occasionally miss a day or two of entering data into the computer, but I keep notes throughout the day and catch up when needed. It’s a commitment, and one I plan to keep.
Writing and posting an article to this blog every day for one year. I’ve thought about creating an inventory of articles so I can take a day off now and then. Sometimes I do write tomorrow’s article today. But I like the immediacy of writing and posting each day. It feels alive, meaningful, unforced, and fresh.
No sweets until I reach my target weight, and then only sparingly.
No alcohol until I reach my target weight either. Earlier this year, I had already implemented an “only drink socially” policy, which I have broken a few times, I must embarrassingly admit. But no more. Better to avoid it altogether than break a promise to myself.
Walking 15,000 steps per day on average until I reach my target weight, recovering the ground lost during my injury and surgery last fall.
That’s a lot of commitment.
That’s a lot of change.
So before adding anything else, I am focusing on these things.
I suppose we could say my next One Hit Wonder is simply increasing my daily step count to 30,000 steps on days when I can, and only while I am in the PNW, which I currently expect to be until late September, and likely into early October.
You see, 30,000 steps will lead to several things:
It will ensure that I maintain a 15,000-step daily average for the summer, and perhaps for the year.
It will force me to change my routines. Yesterday and today, I am walking from my house outward. Eventually that will become boring enough that I will seek out new scenery. Maybe I’ll spend a day walking a cool town. Maybe I’ll head to one of the amazing parks in the PNW and actually hike a trail or two.
It will lead me to reinstate my daily strength practices because I get steps in when I do them.
It will lead me to play my songs standing up each day because I get steps in when I do that, too.
Do you see the logic in this madness?
I think I do.
But let’s see how it goes.
It’s very exciting to be involved in right now.
And I think that showed in how I was interacting with my neighbors.
You see, I was the one initiating the lively and fun banter.
Oh, yes, I always smile, wave, and say hello to people passing by.
But I rarely start conversations.
I think that says quite a bit about the changes already taking place.