Intentional Stress Challenge: DeVice Fasting

Progressive challenge series to manage urges relating to technology and train resilience.

The more we value things, the less we value ourselves.

-Bruce Lee

In my prior post relating to time-restricted eating, I argued that the best reason to attempt intermittent or prolonged fasting was psychological. Master your urges to master yourself. 

If modern humans crave one thing more than food, it’s technology. Particularly technology on our phones whether it be social media, email, streaming services, gambling, or games. The average person checks their phone every 12 minutes which equates to ~80 times a day. The average active use of these device is three hours a day with social media apps accounting for the majority of that time. Heavy users are closer to five hours a day of use. Research reports that just under half of smartphone users say they can’t live without their device.

We are all creatures of habit. This can be extremely beneficial when our habits are productive or detrimental when they aren’t, especially over time. Technological advancements have led to incredible improvements in our society, however, they have also led to a new form of addiction. If it isn’t our cell phones or social media, it may be the television, video games, tablets, computers, or other forms of technology that inhabit most of our free time. The thought of going a day without technology may seem unreasonable or even impossible for some. This challenge can also apply to other behaviors you want better control over such as consumption of a particular type of food or drink. Having control over our urges and less than valuable habits is a challenge worth pursuing. You may even be able to replace some of these habits with more fulfilling ones such as reading, writing, outdoor activities, meditation, or spending more time with loved ones. Good habits beget more good habits.