25+ Self Improvement Thread I'm proposing a change from

I don't really need to turn my life around, although I do need to make it better. 25, and graduated in July from Univ so have my Masters now. Need to find a nice job so I can move out of town and really start the next stage of my life.

General advice to others:
- Eat healthy
- Go outside, even if it is just for short walks
- Be grateful for some of the most simple things, like waking up in the morning and seeing the sunshine go through your windows
- Try and practice meditation, which is basically just being silent, and focusing on passing thoughts through breathing in and out
- Call your parents every once in a while
- Make your goals clear and obtainable, or just go with the flow as you see fit

I began to "re-invent" myself a year ago, when I realized my life was going nowhere, I spent 5+ hours daily playing video games and all my relationships had been with semi-psycho women.

Starting out I did some basic things to build up self-control again, like block off reddit(lel), 4chan, news sites, facebook and steam. I would still unblock them in the beginning, but I got complete control of it in the end.

Now I:
> Lift weights x3 weekly.
> Do yoga x5 weekly, when I'd otherwise lift.
> Eat a planned diet, that actually covers every micro nutrient daily.
> Bike to work.
> Study for a second masters when I get home from work, essentially till I sleep.

You might think "nice social life fag", but I actually had barely any before and now I talk with probably 40 - 50 different people on any given day. Friends from gym, yoga studio, cooking classes on weekends, biking tournaments I attend in summer and fellow online students.

I'm glad there is such a thread for a change. Indeed the other threads seem to be pity-parties, and to be honest, at 25 your life is just fucking starting senpai. I'd say it's the perfect chance to do turn your life around.

As for me, I've been learning programming for about 3 years now. However I feel that programming computers is not so much my thing.
I'm learning about networking as my main thread, so I can get some jobs with network administration. I'd like to actually git gud and specialize in traffic analysis and network security.
On the other hand I am interested in low-level programming and handheld devices, I think I'm going to start learning electronics, see if I can get something done.
I also have a little netbook running FreeBSD and I want to get to know it inside out so I can tweak it to my needs.

I live with my parents, and a part of me wants to leave, but another part of me wants to keep playing with new things and I don't have friends out in the world anyway. However my parents are pressuring me to do something with my life so I don't really have a choice.

File: wpid-wp-1442078892324.jpg (19KB, 624x351px) Image search: [Google]

19KB, 624x351px

>>17852728
Reading this gives me inspiration, anon-kun. Godspeed to you.

I need real help but I don't think anyone here will have the answers for me

I am 34. I have no job or degree. I still live with my mom which basically makes me suicidal. I have been single for 3 years and not got laid in all that time either. I am painfully skinny, lead a sedentary life stuck in front of the computer and my posture is FUCKED as a result, I am addicted to jerking off/porn and in general I am prone to anxiety, depression, self-loathing...the works.

Ok, enough of the pity party. I am at a stage in life where I know this is basically my last chance now. I have enough years under my belt to feel that I "know myself" pretty well by now. My issues stem from childhood etc etc but I need to fucking move on now. The same self-destructive cycle keeps repeating year after year.

Despite my shit life, I have known for some time WHAT I need to do and things that absolutely help. Things such as regular meditation and gym, getting out in the real world as much as possible, getting a job and finding something worthwhile to work towards career wise. I just worry its too fucking late now. The thought of spending the rest of my life as a lonely minimum wageslave scares the shit out of me. But I just don't know what to do. I've tried the cliche advice like "learn to code" etc. Its not for me. My motivation, emotional stability and delayed gratification abilities are terrible.

I don't know if anyone can help. But fuck it, why not just tell my story here. I have nothing to lose

I had to reinvent myself at 27 (currently 29 now)

Got fired for browsing the internet insistently despite warnings, with the root cause being anxiety. Didn't want to get a new job, so I started my own company in 3d printing, something that I have never seen before buying my own. Started learning 3ds max too (had experience with parametric cad only) on tutorials on the internet.

Sounds cliche, but it's never too late to start something new. I feel bad that it took change to be pushed upon me to realize it, since I spent almost 2 years thinking about leaving my job before being fired.

>>17852761

Curious, we just posted at the same time: >>17852767

>>17852774

Life is really bad and its my fault. I can't keep blaming my past, other people have had things much worse than me.

I'm in such a rut right now. I've got out of them before but never been able to sustain any progress. Its got to the point where I expect to fail or lose motivation whenever things start looking up as that has been the pattern for so many years.

Well done for starting your own company. 3D printing should be serious money in the coming years

>>17852767
hey just out of curiousity: what does your company do?

>>17852790

You have to change being pessimist for not creating expectations. When you already expect yourself to fail, being the cause internal or external, you're already sabotaging yourself into failure, and it only feeds itself back.

Not creating expectations is much different. You're open to both failure and success. You don't know if you'll succeed, and you have to be ready to fail, but you don't expect it. This way, even if you fail, you won't get as disappointed as if you already expected it.

For gym, you can simply turn off your computer right now and go run on the street. Run as far as you can, and when you get tired, walk back. You'll get farther and farther each time you do that. I can't say I do it myself, but my father in law is a marathonist at 65 and is always 1st or 2nd in his category, so even if I don't do it myself, I know pretty well that it is possible.

For posture, you don't even have to leave your room. Look into stretching routines that you can take solo, I'm 100% sure there's something on youtube. Stick to one channel when you find one that suits you. If you stretch for 20 minutes everyday, you'll see a lot of difference in three months at most. Try to keep track on your evolution in simple exercises, as sitting 90 degress with your legs stretched and seeing how far you can reach until you grab your toes.

And one of the best tips I read somewhere: split your day in at least four 2 hours periods. 2 hours is as short as a movie, and you'll have the feeling of accomplishment by the end of each of them. Set milestones to reach within those two hours.

>>17852806

>>17852806

Today I do everything I come accross. I've printed from TC scans to game models and engineering parts for prototiping.

It sounds successfull as fuck but I'm not there yet. I still have a lot of trouble finding new clients, specially because it's a very new field and I live in a 3rd world country. But I'm already trying to expand my horizons with mold making and lost wax casting with some partners.

I don't earn nearly enough to fund myself, but I'm sure all the knowledge I'm getting now will pay off in the future. I haven't come accross much that I didn't manage to do after some effort. The only thing I admit that I had a bigger bite than I could take was promising a waterproof model before ever having done something like this. It took too long and the client gave up, but I came this close to manage it. So even though I failed, I'm already much closer to accomplish that than anyone that simply said "I can't do it".

>>17852699
Im 19 but i have a pretty positive outlook when i used to be so negative about life and myself. Maybe its just youthful idealism but what helps me get by is knowing i will never be perfect and that life is about constant learning and growth until the end. I have a lot to be sad about like kissless virgin, bad teeth i dont have money to fix, im smart but very slow which defeats the purpose of intelligence imo, not the most attractive either but i have plenty to be happy about as well, i have a good paying job for my age straight after HS, not a whole lot of responsibility yet either, a loving family and a few good friends. Ive come to this point through meditation and studying philosophy, life is amazing once you learn to live in the present and stop worrying, which meditation has helped immensely. Being able to wake up to a beautiful sunrise, eat good food, work hard, come home, relax, play guitar and browse internet is a great thing and i feel like a lot of these sad people on this board take that for granted

tl;dr meditation, philosophy, a positive outlook, good job, and a hobby i care immensely about

>>17852840

>>17852761 miserable anon here

The fact you have discovered meditation at such a young age is fantastic for you. I only got into it about 3 years ago when I was into my 30s. It absolutely helps in major ways, consistency is the most important thing though.

You seem to have your head screwed on, probably a lot more than I did at your age. I was insecure, virgin, unattractive too but I still went out and got wasted every weekend. Felt like it meant something at the time.

I often wonder what I would have posted in these kind of threads when I was your age. 4chan and widespread internet was still not even a thing back then.

>>17852852
Yeah I definitely have my insecurities, but i dont let them define me and control my actions and perception like so many others do. Life is truly a gift and happiness is a choice, sounds cliche but there's a reason cliches exist

>>17852719
>Make your goals clear and obtainable

This is incredibly important. Too many times people set the bar too high and when they fail, which is inevitable, they get discouraged. You gotta walk before you can run.

I've been eating incredibly healthy for the past year and working out regularly. I'll be 30 this week and I'm in the best shape of my life. I feel like I did when I was 17 and skateboarded around town jumping off shit all day. For awhile, despite being young, I started to feel older physically but that's no longer the case since I ditched my sedentary habits. I quit drinking and smoking.

Basically the me now is not who I thought I would be or could be. I think that's important to realize if you're looking for change. Just start small and build upon it. Eventually you'll make the changes you want and become the person you want to be. Before you know it you'll be a completely different person. A person you thought you could never be.

>>17852864

I really feel like getting in shape would be the best thing I could do, even though it doesn't contribute anything to career etc. Really just need to get back in the fucking gym and start meal planning etc

I say, as failures, we are not really in the position to give advices. But that's just me.

>>17852728
Would u mind sharing a piece of that planned diet? :)

>>17853120
Not with that attitude.

I'm glad this kind of threads exist.

I'm 21 and trying to improve. Slowly but surely. Stopped gaming completely, now I'm wasting time with fapping and browsing 4chan.
I also really need to make a schedule, I was saying this for a few months now. I should just "do it" but I don't for some reason.

I've already done some of the legwork into turning my shit around. I lost the weight, I have a career in the works (barely, but still), and I have the very rare opportunity to design and own a nice loft. I know what hobbies I want to practice in the next few years, and I've been getting a lot of attention from young girls lately.

I still have a real fear of intimacy but the attention is nice.

>>17853473
At 21, I went from playing ~8hr a day of vidya to none basically on a dare from my (then) girlfriend. Honestly, it was only supposed to be for a month, but I went a few weeks extra because it felt so fucking good.

Once you manage to cut the 4chan out of so much of your day, you'll find yourself going outside, reading, basically being more active in general.

>>17853140
Not that anon but I can tell you what I eat daily.

Breakfast at 6 AM
1 cup plain oatmeal with a scoop of whey protein
420 calories, 36 g protein, 57 g carbs, 6 g fat

Snack 9 AM
Greek yogurt (oikos triple zero)
1/2 cup granola
330 calories, 20 g protein, 53 g carbs, 5 g fat

Lunch at 11:30 (now this meal varies)
4 oz. chicken breast
1/2 cup rice
1/2 cup green beans
300 calories, 33 g protein, 26 g carbs, 1 g fat

I eat chicken for lunch about 4 days out of the week, the other days I eat pork loin, salmon or turkey chili. It's typically a 300-400 calorie lunch with 30-40 g protein, 20-30 g carbs, and very low fat.

Preworkout/Postworkout
Cytogainer 4 scoops
560 calories, 54 g protein, 74 g carbs, 5 g fat

Dinner 6 PM
More chicken and veggies usually, no carbs
Typically around 300-350 calories, 30-40 g protein, almost no fat

Last snack 8 or 9 PM
16 oz 2% milk and 2 scoops of whey
440 calories, 64 g protein, 30 g carbs, 7 g fat

It usually comes in at around 3,000-3,100 calories, 250-270 g protein, 330-360 g carbs, 50-70 g fat.

Now obviously you can cut some of the portions, like my breakfast I double up on the oatmeal. The cytogainer too is an extra 540 calories a day. Those two alone can decrease the calories by like 700. Knock out a snack and you're probably around 2,000 calories, cut the portions and you're below if you're trying to lose weight.

My diet is pretty much the same day in and day out. So it's simple to keep up with. Lots of chicken, rice, and veggies. 3,000 is for maintenance for me because I workout about an 1 1/2 hours 5-6 days a week. All strength training, no cardio, but some of my workouts turn into a circuit so it's almost like cardio.

Creating and maintaining a diet are tough. It's a lot harder than the gym part.

>>17853531
I just realized I missed a snack after lunch, it's usually a banana, an apple and 2 tablespoons of peanut butter

That's usually around 1:30 and it's like 500 calories, 10 g protein, 60 g carbs, and 15 g fat.

I use MyFitnessPal to track my calories and macros.

>>17853473
Make "to do lists" that are achievable. I make them almost everyday. Sometimes it's only 2-3 things and sometimes it's 7-8 things and something gets carried over to the next day.

>>17853578
Yeah, I need to do that otherwise I simply forget things and remember them when it's urgent or after they should be already done.
Thanks anon.
Have to sleep now.

>>17852840
>19

Is there illiteracy problem on 4chan?

>>17853624
>illiteracy problem

Op says
>Offer advice
Doesn't offer advice on /adv/. You are the problem.

I don't want to talk about my plans/goals. They never happen, and there is now scientific proof of why people that talk about their goals are less likely to accomplish them. I've been a big talker, and now I know why I don't accomplish anything.
https://www.ted.com/talks/derek_sivers_keep_your_goals_to_yourself

What I need to do is talk to others to process my own thoughts. What I want is validation and understanding.

>>17852761
I'm 33, I have no job/degree/career, no friends, live with my parents, and I've never had a girlfriend in my entire life.

All I can do now is get new treatment for my lifelong depression/anxiety/panic attacks and go to the gym as much as possible. Maybe it will help me and I can get started on other things. Or maybe it won't. The important thing is to do something right?

>>17853531

Very helpful thanks

I''ve just started Stronglifts and looking to bulk up. I workout at night between approx 9.30pm and 10.30pm. I don't bother with a pre-workout usually as I have my main evening meal about 6-6.30pm and a weight gain/protein shake post-workout

Your diet is very simple. I can imagine myself being able to prepare and eat that pretty much every day