The legacy of the wonderful, gentle Dr Michael Mosly will endure for many reasons but one of his greatest gifts will be the ‘Just one thing’ podcast. It’s a powerful reminder to absolutely everyone that tackling our challenges or looking for lifestyle improvements works best through a series of small, manageable steps. From eating flax seeds to trying Nordic Walking, he was a great advocate for exploring new activities to find things you enjoy that will form good habits and lead to a better sense of well-being.
Some of the most memorable habits he encouraged us to consider include:
Snack smartly
Get an early night
Drink green tea
Be kind
Listen to music
Walk backwards
Have a laugh
Embrace the rain
Reheat pasta
Read a daily poem
Swim
Nibble some nuts
Read
Get some houseplants
Change your mealtimes
Stand on one leg
Sing
Put your phone down
Some of these are well-known, others less so. Did you know that walking backwards has all sorts of physical benefits and can even boost memory function? The altered state of reheated pasta means it digests more easily, reduces blood sugar spikes and can reduce your cancer risk. Dr Mosley is well-known for suggesting we stand on one leg whilst brushing our teeth – to strengthen our core and improve our balance. He suggested that we incorporate it as a daily practice when we do something routine. The research shows it can contribute to a more active and healthier life. And don’t worry about wobbling off balance, it’s all part of the process!
We love this quick and simple approach to developing beneficial new habits. He uses the word ‘snacking’ often when describing the speed and regularity of some of the ideas. This has the dual effect of making change sound very appealing whilst also demystifying the thought of trying something new. There are so many ideas, reassuringly backed up with science, that it would be hard to read through the podcast titles alone without being drawn to a few of them, especially when you can officially take a nap, have a coffee and enjoy a break – it sounds great!
Of course it’s not about Just One Thing – it’s about a series of small steps to a greater whole. This approach can also be summed up by the philosophy (and book) of ‘Eat the Frog’ and the Japanese practice of Kaizen – also theories and inspiration that lead to us making small, incremental changes.
However you go about it, we’d urge you to listen to Just One Thing – each episode is aptly only 15 minutes long which makes them perfect place to start. There are well over a hundred episodes so there’s plenty of choice. Start with just one thing and, if you continue to embrace new discoveries, the collective differences will soon amount to significant, life-changing behaviour.
We are going to start with just two things - eating last night’s leftover lasagne whilst standing on one leg!
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