Building Is Strong but Basement Weak
No. Don’t judge from the title that I am going to talk about the legendary Tamil comedy.
A bit of long prelude. Readers following my writings in the past one year would have noticed a theme in my activities. I consider sleep as a foundation for my health and mental well being. As I am obsessed with food and workout this year, I have been thinking a lot about sleep optimisation and improvement. As a gadget fanatic, I am always optimistic about tech. I started to invest in sleep tech. I bought an Oura ring to track my sleep pattern. It has been outstanding in giving feedback. I made sure I sleep in an absolute dark and cold room. I even floated for 45 mins in an Epsom salt-filled water tank to improve my resting heart rate. I often lament that since I live in India, I don’t get a chance to try a temperature-controlled bed or a weighted blanket. Whenever someone travels from the U.S to India, I snuck in some order. Recently I ordered a blue light blocking glass to my brother’s Berkeley address, who is travelling to India in a few weeks.
All of this was set in motion by a book I heard in my company’s book club: Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker. I was so impressed by the book that I went and bought a hard copy for future re-read. It was on my list for the best books for 2019.
Note, I said, it “was” on my list. Last week, Alexey Guzey wrote a scathing criticism about this book. It was tough to read. Because Alexey is right and also the author Matthew Walker is also correct. For a moment, I felt like my investment and efforts in sleep were futile. That building is strong, but basement weak feeling.
Alexey argued that Matt makes many inaccurate claims about sleep. Matt claims that humans should get at least 7.5 to 8 hours of sleep and people who sleep less than 6 hours are at the risk of getting cancer. But Alexey debunks that claim and goes on to establish many other inaccuracies in Matt’s book.
Take away for me is simple. 7.5 to 8 hours of sleep is vital for me because it makes me feel excellent and refreshed. The book may be scientifically inaccurate, but, I may sound cheesy, the heart is in the right place. It highlighted the importance of sleep. I had not thought about it in a serious way. This book focused on the necessity to pay attention and prioritise it.
Another critical lesson was reinforced: Barbell strategy on sleep. Yes, the book Why We Sleep is crucial. But I now place it in one extreme of the barbell. The other end is now for people like Alexey and sleep coaches like Martin Reed. The truth is somewhere in between. It is going to be a lifetime effort to tune and discover what works for me and what is really accurate.
The same thing happened a few months ago on a different key concept: Growth Mindset. My then role model and hero, Carol Dweck, was very critically examined by this article. I still believe in the Growth Mindset but I don’t worship Carol Dweck in the pedestal. The same is going to happen for sleep and Matthew Walker.
Comment By Ashutosh 3 Weeks Ago · 0 Likes
I am about to pick up Why We Sleep next to fix my sleep problem, so reading that the book has been criticized and that you believe some of those criticisms is a good “caution: wet floor” sign for me: I will tread carefully. I too am a̶ h̶u̶g̶e̶ f̶a̶n̶ an aggressive gifter of Carol Dweck’s Mindset, as it has helped me much in my life. Finding out that it has been criticized too doesn’t make me stop believing in the growth mindset, but only reminds me that in most cases, things aren’t binary, the truth is somewhere in between. I don’t think I’ll read the criticisms of Mindset, I’m happy in continuing to believe that the growth mindset exists and really works (ignorance is bliss).
I liked reading about your barbell strategy. I found you through your review of Andrew Wilkinson’s book on goodreads. Pleased to have met you by pure chance on the internet, vanakkam! 🙏