Learn how to use the science of vulnerability to gather up the courage to do something risky; how your body burns calories even after you’re done exercising; and a Swedish tradition that could make you more productive. In this podcast, Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer discuss the following stories from Curiosity.com to help you get smarter and learn something new in just a few minutes: Here's Why You Admire Vulnerability in Everyone But Yourself — https://curiosity.im/2Sh9Ug8 The Afterburn Effect Makes You Burn Calories Even After a Workout Is Over — https://curiosity.im/2SikxiL The Swedish Concept of Fika Can Make You More Productive — https://curiosity.im/2Sh9vKE If you love our show and you're interested in hearing full-length interviews, then please consider supporting us on Patreon. You'll get exclusive episodes and access to our archives as soon as you become a Patron! https://www.patreon.com/curiositydotcom Learn about these topics and more on Curiosity.com, and download our 5-star app for Android and iOS. Then, join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Plus: Amazon smart speaker users, enable our Alexa Flash Briefing to learn something new in just a few minutes every day!
Learn how to use the science of vulnerability to gather up the courage to do something risky; how your body burns calories even after you’re done exercising; and a Swedish tradition that could make you more productive.
In this podcast, Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer discuss the following stories from Curiosity.com to help you get smarter and learn something new in just a few minutes:
If you love our show and you're interested in hearing full-length interviews, then please consider supporting us on Patreon. You'll get exclusive episodes and access to our archives as soon as you become a Patron! https://www.patreon.com/curiositydotcom
Learn about these topics and more on Curiosity.com, and download our 5-star app for Android and iOS. Then, join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Plus: Amazon smart speaker users, enable our Alexa Flash Briefing to learn something new in just a few minutes every day!
Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/be-brave-using-the-science-of-vulnerability-boost-productivity-with-fika-and-burn-calories-via-the-afterburn-effect
[MUSIC PLAYING] CODY GOUGH: Hi, we've got three stories from curiosity.com to help you get smarter in just a few minutes. I'm Cody Gough.
ASHLEY HAMER: And I'm Ashley Hamer. Today you'll learn how to use the science of vulnerability to gather up the courage to do something risky, how your body burns calories even after you're done exercising, and a Swedish tradition that could make you more productive.
CODY GOUGH: Unsatisfy some curiosity. We all want to seem like we're strong and in control. But if you want to ask your crush to go out on a date or get the party started by being the first one on stage singing karaoke, then you've got to make yourself vulnerable. Easier said than done though, right? Well, here's some good news. New research into vulnerability could teach you how to have the courage to go for the gold.
ASHLEY HAMER: I'm very bad at being vulnerable
CODY GOUGH: I think we all are.
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah, it's scary.
CODY GOUGH: But it shouldn't be scary.
ASHLEY HAMER: Of course, it's scary. You're opening yourself up to be hurt and insulted and just taken down by someone else.
CODY GOUGH: Well, the whole point of the story is to show that what you're saying isn't as big of a deal as people make it out to be.
ASHLEY HAMER: Well, I sure hope so.
CODY GOUGH: So get this. It's a pretty well-documented fact that most of the time, showing vulnerability works out in the vulnerable person's favor. And a new report from the University of Mannheim found that when study participants were put in vulnerable situations, both hypothetical and real, they rated other people is showing more courage than the participants themselves did.
See, according to the researchers, you admire vulnerability in everyone but yourself because of your construal levels. You measure your construal level in relation to your distance from a particular event, be it physical, psychological, temporal, or hypothetical. Your construal level is higher when it's close to you and lower when it's far.
Here's an example. Imagine what it was like for someone to be asked to juggle on the other side of the world 100 years ago. Your relationship to that situation would sit at a pretty high construal level. Maybe a little lower if you're a juggler.
But now imagine yourself juggling in the next hour, and your construal level is suddenly quite low. As it turns out, when you view something with a low construal level, you're more likely to focus on the ancillary details and mitigating factors. You'll become self-focused on things like, I had a sore throat last night. I've never sung this song in front of people. Or these people might hate my voice.
But if you imagine singing in front of other people with a high construal level, like if you imagine it's going to be someone else singing, then you're more likely to focus on the broader, general picture, thinking something more along the lines of singing in front of people is a brave thing to do. So if you need to muster up the courage to do something risky, maybe the secret will be to take a step back and imagine somebody else doing it. If they can, then so can you.
ASHLEY HAMER: Did you know that you don't just burn calories while you're exercising? Your body keeps burning calories after you're done working out, sometimes for a pretty long time. This is called the afterburn effect, and some exercises do it more than others. Ready to get fit while you're on your couch recovering from your last workout?
CODY GOUGH: Am I? [CHUCKLES] My favorite thing about lifting weights is that I know this, and I can go to the gym, lift weights, go on my couch, eat a bunch. I'm still burning calories, and I'm getting muscle.
ASHLEY HAMER: Totally.
CODY GOUGH: I mean, in moderation.
ASHLEY HAMER: In moderation. All things. So the scientific term for the afterburn effect is excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC. And research says the more intense the exercise, the more it kicks in.
One study found that participants burned more calories in the 14 hours after an intense workout than they did for an entire rest day. Another study showed that even though you burn more calories during cardio workouts than weight training, the calories you burn after each workout are roughly the same. With the way people talk about diet and exercise, sometimes it feels like a good workout can be completely ruined by a single donut. The afterburn effect just goes to show how false this thinking is. Exercise has an impact that goes far beyond a few extra calories, which is why it's important to make it a regular part of your life.
CODY GOUGH: This goes back to a story we did on the podcast earlier about how, really, the majority of your calories that you burn throughout the day are just by existing.
ASHLEY HAMER: Totally. Yeah. All the activity you do that isn't exercise.
CODY GOUGH: Yeah, like walking and typing. And that's why this is especially helpful to know because, again, if you just think you're burning calories when you're at the gym for that 30 minutes, you're doing it wrong.
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah. You are not a machine with inputs and outputs. You're a human being with complex systems, and you just need to get good habits. And that's all you need to worry about.
CODY GOUGH: We love productivity hacks here at Curiosity, and we know you do too. And that's why today, I'm going to dive into the Swedish concept of fika. It can make you more productive, and it's a pretty fun thing to do too. We should do this more.
ASHLEY HAMER: We should.
CODY GOUGH: Where's your afternoon coffee, Ashley?
ASHLEY HAMER: Then I won't sleep at night.
CODY GOUGH: [LAUGHS] That's OK. That's all right.
ASHLEY HAMER: Don't make us talk about sleep habits again.
CODY GOUGH: Nope, wouldn't dream of it. Look, fika is essentially a coffee break. Pretty simple, right? But according to the Swedish Institute's website, Swedes prefer not to translate the word because they don't want to oversimplify it. It's a tradition that's been around for a long time, and it's not just an excuse to take a time out for a cup of Joe.
This is not your average pumpkin spice latte run. Yes, it's a coffee break, but it's also described by the Swedish Institute as a social phenomenon. It's a retreat from the stresses of the day with a real focus on bonding with the people around you. Swedes try to have a good quality fika session several times a day, and they can happen anywhere at any time.
Now in reality, these breaks happen a lot more with older generations. And they don't happen as often with the kids these days. But according to the BBC, many Swedish companies have experimented with mandatory fika breaks, saying that a fika session can actually lead to a bump in productivity.
Plenty of studies have backed this up, showing that a 15-minute break from your workplace duties can help you stay focused throughout the day, fuel your productivity, improve your self-control, and keep you from totally burning out by 5:00 PM, not to mention just flat out make you happy. As for fika specifically, a 2010 study found that Swedish workers were the least stressed worldwide. And according to the OECD Better Life Index, Swedes aren't any less productive than the rest of the world. That's even considering their frequent fikas, shorter workdays, and the fact that only 1% of Swedish employees work overtime. In 2014, Sweden ranked 11 out of 38 countries analyzed for productivity. Anyone else fancy fika right about?
ASHLEY HAMER: I sure do.
CODY GOUGH: We did the cheeseburger version of a fika break last week.
ASHLEY HAMER: We did. That was great.
CODY GOUGH: Was it not great?
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah.
CODY GOUGH: Got to do that more. Just talk by your co-workers desk. Say, let's go grab a cup of Joe. It can work wonders. Before we wrap up today, I want to give a special shout-out to some of our Patreons for supporting our show. Thank you, [? Mark ?] [? McCullough, ?] [? Kari ?] [? Greenwald, ?] Luke Chapman, Jordan Sanford, Doug [? Hinch, ?] and [? Stefan Crete ?] for contributing to our Patreon page. You are helping us satisfy the curiosity of a lot of people by chipping in to support the show.
ASHLEY HAMER: If now's not the best time for a financial contribution, then please tell one friend about our show. That will seriously help us out a lot. But if you're listening and you want to support Curiosity Daily on Patreon, then visit patreon.com/curiosity.com, all spelled out. Even a couple of bucks a month makes a difference. That's less than a cup of coffee during your next fika. And our Patreons get lots of exclusive stuff, like a really exciting full-length Curiosity podcast episode we just released this week.
CODY GOUGH: One more time, that's patreon.com/curiosity.com. That's all for today, but here's a sneak peek at what you can learn about this weekend on curiosity.com.
ASHLEY HAMER: This weekend, you'll learn about how scientists recreated deja vu in a lab, why fish aren't electrocuted by lightning, an equator theme park that's located in the wrong place, and more.
CODY GOUGH: And if there's something else you're curious about, then email your question to podcast@curiosity.com, and we might answer it on a future episode.
ASHLEY HAMER: Join us again Sunday on the award-winning Curiosity Daily and learn something new in just a few minutes. I'm Ashley Hamer.
CODY GOUGH: And I'm Cody Gough. Have a great weekend.
ASHLEY HAMER: And stay curious.
NARRATOR: On the Westwood One Podcast Network.