On the 29th of June 2022, I published my first newsletter here titled ‘Why You Shouldn’t Listen To Healthy Centenarians’.
Forty people read the article, which wasn’t so bad, given I had only 12 subscribers.
Almost exactly one year to the day one of you became the 10,000th subscriber to this newsletter.
Over that twelve months, the articles here have been read more than half a million times.
For that, I am completely blown away and eternally grateful.
Each week I try and cover an interesting topic that broadly falls under the umbrella of health.
Health, in my view, is a combination of 3 variables:
Life Span - How Long You Live.
Health Span - The Quality Of How You Move & Think.
Soul Span - How You Plan To Spend That Time
The primary reason I write these articles is to teach myself.
While I am very familiar with all of the research across these domains, writing about them has forced me to synthesise my views in a way that is translatable and hopefully enjoyable to read.
I expect more than anyone who reads this newsletter; I have probably learned the most.
Secondly, publishing an article every week and simply putting the content out into the world has restored my faith in the idea that if you put ideas out there, interesting things will happen.
Most of them I could never have anticipated, but all have been incredibly valuable.
If you have ever considered starting something because you know that ‘you just have to’ but aren’t sure where the benefit will come from…. I suggest you just do it.
Start today.
The world will reward you.
It certainly has rewarded me.
Lastly, it is incredibly telling to look at the articles that were the most read over the last year and what they say about what you want to hear about.
The most read article was ‘All We Have Is Time’.
The second most read article was ‘Zone 2 Exercise’.
The third most read article was ‘How To Lower Cholesterol Without Medications’.
When I reflect on these topics, it appears that most of you here are deeply aware that despite even the best lifestyle and medical interventions, our time here is limited.
We can optimise every aspect of our health, but ultimately, the sands of time are slipping through our fingers, and the only thing we have is today.
None of us is ever guaranteed tomorrow.
It is our ability to appreciate ‘today’ that is the greatest measure of health.
The second and third most-read articles highlight that most people here have a strong desire to exercise and do so in the most efficient and enjoyable way possible.
Zone 2 and (Zone 1) training really have opened up a world of enjoyable fitness for me personally. I hope they can be beneficial for you too.
The article on cholesterol speaks to everyone's desire to achieve goals without needing medications. I hear you, but I am also very aware that we have safe and effective tools to meet that task, and not using them is leaving potentially major gains on the table.
But we all navigate this path individually, matching our approaches with our goals.
No one has the ‘right answer’, only the answer that works for them.
All three of these articles are posted below in case you want to have another read or check them out for the very first time.
I revisit these articles myself regularly.
Most of all, thank you for sharing your attention with me.
Attention really is the cash value of the universe.
Possibly even more than time.
In this world of distraction, I could not be more grateful that you have carved out some of your precious attention to read what I have written.
To another year and another set of life lessons.
With the deepest of gratitude.
Paddy
July 1st 2023
No surprise with your growth Paddy, your articles are always impactful 👍
Dear Dr Barrett, keep writing. Its great to read a medic who can mix healthcare data with practical and sound observation and advice. As someone in the pharma industry for over 30 years, I have observed that good medicines often make good treatments, but good medicine treats the person and not just the illness or complaint. Keep it up - your article on Time was especially inspiring and thought provoking.