“Life hacks” that actually work

[Punisher]

Bleach bottles have a warning on their side that you shouldn’t drink it.

Yeah but what if I want to inject it to kill the Covid?

I just checked. No warning for this so all should be good.

[Punisher]

Always spend less than you make and eventually you'll have more money than you did today.

Want to lose weight? Stop eating.

Don't like your job? Quit and find a worse job so you can see how good you had it.

The grass is always greener on your neighbors lawn? Break in, lock them in the basement and take over their house.

[Blackhawk]

Want to lose weight? Stop eating.

True. It will work so-so for a week or two, after which you will lose weight very, very quickly - until you're just skin and bones, give or take the skin.

I'd go with 'consume less fuel than you burn', with the caveat to make sure that you're getting all of the nutrients you need (especially protein, or you'll just lose muscle, not fat.)

[em2nought]

Was out driving today and remembered the two life hacks I forgot last week.

1. Your camera phone is great for magnifying coupons, credit cards, ingredients, anything you can't read. Very handy for an aging forum!

2. If you download the translate app you can open it, select the languages, then select camera in the translate app, and point it at a sign that's in a foreign language, and the phone will translate the sign for you in the camera app. Very handy!

[Punisher]

Was out driving today and remembered the two life hacks I forgot last week.

1. Your camera phone is great for magnifying coupons, credit cards, ingredients, anything you can't read. Very handy for an aging forum!

You can also zoom in on your grass to see exactly which kids you need to yell at!

[coopasonic]

Want to lose weight? Stop eating.

True. It will work so-so for a week or two, after which you will lose weight very, very quickly - until you're just skin and bones, give or take the skin.

I'd go with 'consume less fuel than you burn', with the caveat to make sure that you're getting all of the nutrients you need (especially protein, or you'll just lose muscle, not fat.)

...and reducing the fuel is generally easier than increasing the burn. You don't have to clean your plate, no matter what mom says.

[Blackhawk]

Want to lose weight? Stop eating.

True. It will work so-so for a week or two, after which you will lose weight very, very quickly - until you're just skin and bones, give or take the skin.

I'd go with 'consume less fuel than you burn', with the caveat to make sure that you're getting all of the nutrients you need (especially protein, or you'll just lose muscle, not fat.)

...and reducing the fuel is generally easier than increasing the burn. You don't have to clean your plate, no matter what mom says.

True. But simply reducing the fuel (especially by a lot) can be counter productive, as it won't result in burning fat. When the body runs out of fuel, it tends to go to the protein (IE - muscles) first, as fat is a super-efficient way of storing extra fuel, and the body prefers to keep in reserve. Not only that, but your body will also simply reduce fuel usage to conserve it (it will make you constantly tired so that you expend less energy.)

A lot of places/guides/articles/people go way overboard and drive people off by making losing weight sound like a complete lifestyle reboot (which most people don't want), and get way, way too complex about the process. They seem to imply that unless you go 100% into the 'healthy lifestyle' camp, you're going to fail. That's bullshit, and it scares people off. There is a minimum you should do, but it isn't that hard.

So, here's the real hack:

-------------------------------------------------

Here is the bare minimum to lose weight without complications, and without wasting your time. Think of the rest of the post (spoilered) as the explanation of the steps.

1. Use an online calculator with only 4 things to enter to find out how many calories you need.
2. Figure out how much to subtract from that number, and decide how to figure out how much you're eating.
3. Figure out how much protein you need (your weight in kilos, multiply by one number.
4. Be active enough to keep your body from eating your muscles.

-----------------------------------------------

Spoiler:

To lose weight effectively, you need to limit how much you reduce your fuel intake (if you're eating 1200 calories per day, you're not losing fat - you're becoming malnourished.) Don't reduce it enough, you don't lose much. Reduce it too much, you don't lose much. You figure out the right amount to reduce it by, at the very least:

1. Using a simple calculator online that gives you your BMR (how many calories you burn per day simply by breathing and producing body heat) and adjusts it for activity. In other words, how many calories you're using per day. Over simplified, if you eat more than that, you gain. Eat less, you lose. This calculator is good.

2. There are three options: Easy, Medium, and Hard. Easy: If you're not wanting to spend a lot of effort thinking about what you're eating, do not eat less than 500 below that number. Medium: If you're willing to carefully track what you eat, you can push that to 1000 below. Hard: You never want to go more than 1000 below that number unless you are paying very, very close attention, doing research, and probably talking to a doctor.

3. Paying some attention to your nutrition. How much effort depends on what you chose in #2. As I mentioned above, you're eating less than you need. That means that you need to make absolutely sure that what you do eat still has the nutrients your body needs to function. Easy: Just eating 'better' and making sure you get your veggies can be enough if you're in the 500-below category, although if you're not at least tracking calories, it is almost impossible to actually hit the right number. Medium/Hard: If you're doing any more than that, you need to be using a food tracker and actually making sure that you're not starving your body of nutrients - just calories. And yes, this includes measuring and/or weighing foods. I recommend Chronometer (website and/or app) over MFP, which done got enshittified. Chronometer is free, and unlike MFP, fully usable at the free level.

3. Regardless of how much you're reducing your calories, if you're starving your body, you need to make 100% sure that you're getting your protein. Start by ignoring the RDA. It doesn't mean what people think it means. The RDA is for minimal survival, the safe minimum you need to function. It's what a guy in a coma needs. An even lightly active person needs more, and someone exercising needs much more. On top of that, even if you're sedentary, you need more if you're reducing your caloric intake. It (along with #4) prevents your body from feeding on its own muscles, which makes it burn fat instead.

Example: The US RDA for me is 56 grams of protein. My actual protein need is around 130 grams. If I were working out regularly, I'd need closer to 160 grams - and that is regardless of calories. I would need that much protein to keep from cannibalizing my muscles if I ate 1500 calories per day or 4000.

Simplified calculation for those who don't like research: Sedentary, 1 gram. Active, 1.4 grams. Over 50, add .1 gram. Multiply that by your weight in kilos.

4. You need to move. You don't need to lift weights, or join a gym, or do Couch to 5k. But you do need something to convince your body to behave. Walking for 30 minutes a day would work. Doing some planks, body weight squats, and push-ups would work (which would take about ten minutes total, and doesn't require any equipment - you can do push-ups against a counter if you can't do them on the floor.) You don't even have to break a sweat. But you have to be using your muscles. The idea is that you need to tell your body that your muscles are still needed. That, plus getting enough protein (#3) will trick your body into leaving your muscles alone and burning your fat. And at the same time, it will keep your body's metabolism going, which helps prevent the 'just makes you tired' effect from caloric reduction.

-------------------------------------------

Bonus 1: If you're counting calories, don't start ignoring 'side stuff.' I had a friend who kept trying to lose weight and couldn't get any results. He was cutting his calories back dramatically (beyond what was safe) and was still gaining weight. Physics says, "Huh?" When I started questioning him, he was counting every meal, but not the half a gallon of whole milk he was drinking every day (~1200 calories), the bread on his sandwiches (~160 calories per sandwich), wasn't measuring his peanut butter (he was eating three times as much as he was calculating for) - well, you get the idea. He was eating 2x to 3x the calories he thought he was. The sugar in your coffee, the mayo on your sandwich, the sweetened iced tea, the latte - they all count, and they add up fast.

Bonus 2: Don't try to gain muscle while losing weight. It can be done, but it requires very, very careful management of calories and nutrients to manipulate your body into adding mass while simultaneously reducing another mass. If you wanna, go ahead and do the research, but the better option is to maintain what you've got, lose the weight, and bulk up later.

[gilraen]

True story: 20+ years ago I worked with a guy who was a total type-A personality. He went on the Atkins diet (I think) but he was all about "giving it 100%" and "no cheating". So he loaded up on protein...and not much else. Yeah, first he lost weight and everyone complimented him on how great he looked. Then he ended up in the ER close to kidney failure because his diet wasn't just unsustainable, it was apparently incompatible with functioning internal organs. Go figure.

Anyway, back to life hacks...the rubber band trick to unscrew a stripped screw totally works, and is the reason why I keep random rubber bands in a kitchen drawer.

Using a hair dryer to quickly unfog a bathroom mirror - another one of those things that I thought was common knowledge but apparently not. Much better than wiping the mirror.

[Jaymann]

When I lived in the frozen tundra I used a hair dryer to keep the pipes from freezing.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Using a hair dryer to quickly unfog a bathroom mirror - another one of those things that I thought was common knowledge but apparently not. Much better than wiping the mirror.

FWIW, there are some simple 'life hacks' you can use that will keep your bathroom mirror from fogging up in the first place:

• Before using the shower, lather up your mirror with shaving cream. Use a cloth to spread it across the entire mirror, and let it sit for 10 minutes. Then wipe it down with a dry towel. This will typically keep your mirror fog-free for weeks.
• You can also use vinegar. Just combine one cup of white vinegar with one cup of water in a spray bottle. Spritz, then wipe your mirror with a dry towel. This should keep your mirror steam-resistant for around a week or so.

[em2nought]

Somebody who lived in my condo before me wrote a love note on the bathroom mirror with what I assume was lipstick. Whenever the mirror fogs up the message magically reappears. Under normal conditions there is no message there, nothing I've tried so far has made the foggy love note go away permanently.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Somebody who lived in my condo before me wrote a love note on the bathroom mirror with what I assume was lipstick. Whenever the mirror fogs up the message magically reappears. Under normal conditions there is no message there, nothing I've tried so far has made the foggy love note go away permanently.

If memory serves, the primary ingredients of lipstick are usually wax and oil. So, I'd suggest cleaning your mirror using a cleaner and polish intended for glass cook tops, e.g. something like this:



Because that stuff is specifically designed and intended for removing heavy duty grease and burned-on grime without damaging glass.

[Jaymann]

Somebody who lived in my condo before me wrote a love note on the bathroom mirror with what I assume was lipstick.

At least that's better than GET OUT NOW!

[Lassr]

Have a leaf blower? use it to dry your car after washing, instead of a towel which may streak and often leaves lint.

[Punisher]

True story: 20+ years ago I worked with a guy who was a total type-A personality. He went on the Atkins diet (I think) but he was all about "giving it 100%" and "no cheating". So he loaded up on protein...and not much else. Yeah, first he lost weight and everyone complimented him on how great he looked. Then he ended up in the ER close to kidney failure because his diet wasn't just unsustainable, it was apparently incompatible with functioning internal organs. Go figure.

I'm curious as to how long he was on it before that happened.
I've been on and off it for decades now. My longest run was about 1.5-2 years straight.
I did take daily vitamins as it's recommended for Atkins so I wonder if he skipped that.

[Punisher]

When I lived in the frozen tundra I used a hair dryer to keep the pipes from freezing.

Oh. You're from Canada!

[Punisher]

Somebody who lived in my condo before me wrote a love note on the bathroom mirror with what I assume was lipstick. Whenever the mirror fogs up the message magically reappears. Under normal conditions there is no message there, nothing I've tried so far has made the foggy love note go away permanently.

Here's a life hack guaranteed to remive that message.
Replace the mirror!
You're welcome.
I'm a problem solver. I solve problems.

[em2nought]

Somebody who lived in my condo before me wrote a love note on the bathroom mirror with what I assume was lipstick. Whenever the mirror fogs up the message magically reappears. Under normal conditions there is no message there, nothing I've tried so far has made the foggy love note go away permanently.

Here's a life hack guaranteed to remive that message.
Replace the mirror!
You're welcome.
I'm a problem solver. I solve problems.

I'm too cheap, and too lazy for that method. It's a fairly big mirror. I've got some of that Weiman stove top cleaner so I'm going to try that suggestion.

[Blackhawk]

True story: 20+ years ago I worked with a guy who was a total type-A personality. He went on the Atkins diet (I think) but he was all about "giving it 100%" and "no cheating". So he loaded up on protein...and not much else. Yeah, first he lost weight and everyone complimented him on how great he looked. Then he ended up in the ER close to kidney failure because his diet wasn't just unsustainable, it was apparently incompatible with functioning internal organs. Go figure.

Completely disregarding what your body was designed to handle and what it needs has never been a smart way to go about it.)

Somebody who lived in my condo before me wrote a love note on the bathroom mirror with what I assume was lipstick.

At least that's better than GET OUT NOW!

...and now I know what to do next time I move out of an apartment.

[Jaymon]

House Shoes.

Lot of folks don't wear shoes in the house. But they do have house shoes. Slippers or moccasins or whatnot.
My hack is, any shoes can be house shoes, as long as you don't wear them outside (keeps the soles clean).

My house shoes are a pair of lightweight running shoes. Light, comfy, full arch support, no danger from stray lego bricks.

[Jaymann]

My house shoes are some over sized tennis shoes that give me a smidgen of foot protection, but slide on and off with ease.

[Blackhawk]

My house shoes are my feet. It's hot enough in the Indiana summer without adding unnecessary clothing. In the winter, I sometimes add socks.

[Holman]

I almost never go barefoot in the house; I usually wear socks. In the winter I add warm slippers (of the sort with a back, so they don't slide off).

[Holman]

Don't bag your lawn mower trimmings. Let them fall on the grass while you mow, and they'll break down in just a few days to become natural fertilizer. If they clump, just kick-spread the clumps around a little.

I've been in charge of some size of lawn for 20+ years, and I've never used any sort of fertilizer or other chemical. My lawns always look good enough.

[Blackhawk]

Don't bag your lawn mower trimmings. Let them fall on the grass while you mow, and they'll break down in just a few days to become natural fertilizer. If they clump, just kick-spread the clumps around a little.

I've been in charge of some size of lawn for 20+ years, and I've never used any sort of fertilizer or other chemical. My lawns always look good enough.

Similar logic applies to leaves in the fall. Just mow them and let the shreds lie where they fall.

[LordMortis]

Don't bag your lawn mower trimmings. Let them fall on the grass while you mow, and they'll break down in just a few days to become natural fertilizer. If they clump, just kick-spread the clumps around a little.

I've been in charge of some size of lawn for 20+ years, and I've never used any sort of fertilizer or other chemical. My lawns always look good enough.

I've let me grass grow way too tall, I consider bagging but mulch is the default. Inevitably I end up going over things twice the lawn was too tall. Bagging is more effort than going over the clippings. I don't rake either. I mow the leaves and mulch them too.

[Kraken]

Don't bag your lawn mower trimmings. Let them fall on the grass while you mow, and they'll break down in just a few days to become natural fertilizer. If they clump, just kick-spread the clumps around a little.

I've been in charge of some size of lawn for 20+ years, and I've never used any sort of fertilizer or other chemical. My lawns always look good enough.

They also make excellent mulch. I always weed a section of my garden before I mow, then cover it with fresh clippings.

Similar logic applies to leaves in the fall. Just mow them and let the shreds lie where they fall.

Not true here; they are too thick.

However, here's my tip: Mowing your leaves before you bag them reduces their volume (and the number of bags you'll need) by 75%. Before I learned that trick, I was putting out >40 bags of leaves each year. Now it's more like 12-14. Also, my grass catcher fits exactly into the top of a leaf bag, which makes filling them easy.

I have a neighbor who is obsessed with getting every last particle of leaf litter off his lawn. His industrial-strength, gas-powered leaf blower is in almost daily use during the fall. During the summer, he uses it to blow his grass clippings.

(edit) My "live and let leaf" attitude must drive him insane.

[Zenn7]

Don't bag your lawn mower trimmings. Let them fall on the grass while you mow, and they'll break down in just a few days to become natural fertilizer. If they clump, just kick-spread the clumps around a little.

I've been in charge of some size of lawn for 20+ years, and I've never used any sort of fertilizer or other chemical. My lawns always look good enough.

They also make excellent mulch. I always weed a section of my garden before I mow, then cover it with fresh clippings.

Similar logic applies to leaves in the fall. Just mow them and let the shreds lie where they fall.

Not true here; they are too thick.

I found that the leaves too thick the first year I lived here and tried to mulch them. Several years later, neighbor came by on his mower and ran over them a couple times - they were plenty well mulched then. Ever since, I just mow a bit, back up and run over the same bit again, gets the leaves plenty well mulched.

Much easier than throwing them on a tarp and dragging them out into the woods!

[Kraken]

Don't bag your lawn mower trimmings. Let them fall on the grass while you mow, and they'll break down in just a few days to become natural fertilizer. If they clump, just kick-spread the clumps around a little.

I've been in charge of some size of lawn for 20+ years, and I've never used any sort of fertilizer or other chemical. My lawns always look good enough.

They also make excellent mulch. I always weed a section of my garden before I mow, then cover it with fresh clippings.

Similar logic applies to leaves in the fall. Just mow them and let the shreds lie where they fall.

Not true here; they are too thick.

I found that the leaves too thick the first year I lived here and tried to mulch them. Several years later, neighbor came by on his mower and ran over them a couple times - they were plenty well mulched then. Ever since, I just mow a bit, back up and run over the same bit again, gets the leaves plenty well mulched.

Much easier than throwing them on a tarp and dragging them out into the woods!

I have a 7,777 sq ft lot bordered by two very large oaks, two mature maples, and an old old ash, as well as a Missouri yellowwood and a dogwood. I don't even try to keep up with them when they shed their leaves. I do one major cleanup around Halloween, when they're at least 50% bare, and then a final one Thanksgiving weekend.

My leaf-hating neighbor cut down all his trees right after buying the house, but my yard produces plenty of leaves for everyone.

Last year he severely pruned his side of the oak that straddles our line, and I pruned my side just enough to rebalance it. The canopy's only 1/4 of what it was, but I know he really, really hates that tree. If we move in the next year, as planned, he will probably kill it right after our For Sale sign goes up.

When we bought our house 34 years ago, most houses had a large shade tree in the front yard, and the street was like a shady green tunnel. When they were built a century ago, south-facing shade trees and big banks of windows kept the houses cool. But sunny yards are the fashion now. Nearly all of the old giants are gone, and air conditioning keeps the windows closed. Many people preserved the shade trees in their back yards, but trees' role in natural cooling has been forgotten. 'Course, 100 years ago shade and wind were all the cooling we needed at this latitude.

[dbt1949]

I happened to Goggle a place I used to live as a kid. I got the street view and such enough the tree I planed there some 65 years ago was still there. Couldn't recognize the house but the tree was there!

[Holman]

Speaking of mulch and such:

Don't dump your used coffee grounds in the trash. Instead, take them out and toss them on the garden. They're good fertilizer, and they don't really have to go through any composting process before they're useful.

I've also noticed that box turtles like to eat them.

[hitbyambulance]

the refurbished professional barber shop Oster shaver and the t-trimmer i purchased during 2020 to do my own haircuts also work great as 'lazy shavers'. if i get lazy and don't shave for a while, the electric clippers work waaaaay better and faster than any electric facial hair shaver i've ever used to get it down to a decent stubble length. (at that point you can use your usual shaver/razor, or like me, just let it be)

[Blackhawk]

Speaking of mulch and such:

Don't dump your used coffee grounds in the trash. Instead, take them out and toss them on the garden. They're good fertilizer, and they don't really have to go through any composting process before they're useful.

I've also noticed that box turtles like to eat them.

With caveats. They can stop some plants from sprouting and growing entirely (the problem is caused by the caffeine, not the acidity, which isn't really a thing.)

[Isgrimnur]

Caffeine: Natural occurrence

Caffeine in plants acts as a natural pesticide: it can paralyze and kill predator insects feeding on the plant. ... In addition, high caffeine levels are found in the surrounding soil of coffee seedlings, which inhibits seed germination of nearby coffee seedlings, thus giving seedlings with the highest caffeine levels fewer competitors for existing resources for survival.

[em2nought]

the refurbished professional barber shop Oster shaver and the t-trimmer i purchased during 2020 to do my own haircuts also work great as 'lazy shavers'. if i get lazy and don't shave for a while, the electric clippers work waaaaay better and faster than any electric facial hair shaver i've ever used to get it down to a decent stubble length. (at that point you can use your usual shaver/razor, or like me, just let it be)

I do the exact same thing, but with a WAHL. It's been several years since I've bothered with a razor blade.

[Kraken]

Speaking of mulch and such:

Don't dump your used coffee grounds in the trash. Instead, take them out and toss them on the garden. They're good fertilizer, and they don't really have to go through any composting process before they're useful.

I've also noticed that box turtles like to eat them.

Coffee filters are compostable, too. My grounds and filters go into the bin together.

[Kraken]

I recently overpaid a man named Mr. Jean to come to my house and tune up my lawnmower and snowblower. The mower wouldn't start at all and the blower always starts hard. The former is >30 years old and the latter is 8.

Mr. Jean's tip: Run some TruFuel (sold at Home Depot among others) through the carburetor before you put it away, and it will always start the next season. TruFuel lacks ethanol, which gums up carbs. "If you do this you'll never need to call me again," said Mr. Jean.

Searching this turned up two YouTube videos warning OMG DO NOT USE TRUFUEL, but Ima trust Mr Jean over some random YouTuber.

[Punisher]

I recently overpaid a man named Mr. Jean to come to my house and tune up my lawnmower and snowblower. The mower wouldn't start at all and the blower always starts hard. The former is >30 years old and the latter is 8.

Mr. Jean's tip: Run some TruFuel (sold at Home Depot among others) through the carburetor before you put it away, and it will always start the next season. TruFuel lacks ethanol, which gums up carbs. "If you do this you'll never need to call me again," said Mr. Jean.

Searching this turned up two YouTube videos warning OMG DO NOT USE TRUFUEL, but Ima trust Mr Jean over some random YouTuber.

Plot twist. Mr. Jean is being 100% truthful and you won't need to call him again after using it.
Double plot twist. The reason is tgst it will lill your lawn mower and Mr. Jean has a huge stock portfolio filled with lawn mower companies.

(Note. I actually have no idea what TruFuel is)

[em2nought]

I recently overpaid a man named Mr. Jean to come to my house and tune up my lawnmower and snowblower. The mower wouldn't start at all and the blower always starts hard. The former is >30 years old and the latter is 8.

Mr. Jean's tip: Run some TruFuel (sold at Home Depot among others) through the carburetor before you put it away, and it will always start the next season. TruFuel lacks ethanol, which gums up carbs. "If you do this you'll never need to call me again," said Mr. Jean.

Searching this turned up two YouTube videos warning OMG DO NOT USE TRUFUEL, but Ima trust Mr Jean over some random YouTuber.

I always buy an additive by various brands that's supposed to combat the effects of ethanol in small engines and add it to my mowers designated gas can. Some gas stations have a blue handled pump with no ethanol for an increased fee,

[Kraken]

I recently overpaid a man named Mr. Jean to come to my house and tune up my lawnmower and snowblower. The mower wouldn't start at all and the blower always starts hard. The former is >30 years old and the latter is 8.

Mr. Jean's tip: Run some TruFuel (sold at Home Depot among others) through the carburetor before you put it away, and it will always start the next season. TruFuel lacks ethanol, which gums up carbs. "If you do this you'll never need to call me again," said Mr. Jean.

Searching this turned up two YouTube videos warning OMG DO NOT USE TRUFUEL, but Ima trust Mr Jean over some random YouTuber.

Plot twist. Mr. Jean is being 100% truthful and you won't need to call him again after using it.
Double plot twist. The reason is tgst it will lill your lawn mower and Mr. Jean has a huge stock portfolio filled with lawn mower companies.

(Note. I actually have no idea what TruFuel is)

Mr Jean is an earnest Haitian man who genuinely enjoys overcharging people like me to fix our small engines, based on his banter with Mr Jean Jr. He seemed like an honest small businessman.

TruFuel is basically gasoline without ethanol. It probably has vitamins and minerals too, just because with a name like that, you know Zoomers are going to try it.