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Elo comments on Open Thread, Apr. 20 - Apr. 26, 2015 - Less Wrong Discussion

3 Post author: Gondolinian 20 April 2015 12:02AM

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Comment author: adamzerner 24 April 2015 01:00:03PM *  0 points [-]

I like it!! Never heard it before but it's becoming one of my favorite quotes.

Comment author: Elo 26 April 2015 10:29:36PM 0 points [-]

that line is specifically helpful for tricking your brain into thinking that physically exhausting exercise is a good thing. (don't use it too much, and don't hurt yourself doing it) i.e. pushups.

Comment author: adamzerner 26 April 2015 11:49:32PM *  0 points [-]

That's funny, I actually tried to do as many pushups in a row as I can the day after hearing it. And I did the most I've ever done before btw :)

Why do you think it's specifically good for physical exertion? What about mental or emotional exertion?

Comment author: Elo 27 April 2015 12:54:11AM 0 points [-]

I suspect; pain is a physical feeling, weakness is similarly an understanding of physical problems. By pipining the pain=negative weakness, you convince yourself that (temporarily) more pain is helpful to the cause of doing more pushups, rather than previously "not helpful" as you would have been treating pain and deciding to stop.

I have heard it work before for pushups or similar exercise by danielfilan

(side note: don't push too hard, trust your body's limits - it tends to know when its going to break)

Comment author: adamzerner 27 April 2015 01:14:21AM *  0 points [-]

My impression is that the advice applies more generally than to just physical pain. My impression is that there's a lot of times when your body produces pain-like signals telling you to stop, when it's really in your interest to push through.

  • Mental: overcoming akrasia.
  • Emotional: doing things that scare you, but that will ultimately be in your interest.

And so, to use the emotional example, when I push past fear, I imagine it as weakness leaving my body. I imagine a) becoming a stronger person for having pushed past it and being more capable of pushing past it in the future. And b) I imagine it as weakness leaving the body in the sense of my pushing myself towards an end that is more preferable to me.

Comment author: Lumifer 27 April 2015 02:51:09PM 1 point [-]

when your body produces pain-like signals telling you to stop ... Mental ... Emotional

I think you're confusing your body signaling with pain and your mind yelling "I don't wanna!" These are very different things.

Comment author: adamzerner 27 April 2015 03:08:26PM 0 points [-]

Thanks for clarifying. I know what you mean, but I had just been using the wrong vocabulary.