As our world grows, evolves and becomes easier, its difficult to stay focused on what's important. In America, and much of the developed world, simplicity and ease of life has dominated our daily lives. Sometimes it's important to reflect on what we have and try to give back to this magical world which gives so much to us. So this week, in our own little way, in our own little steps, we will not use paper or plastic materials. Everything we use will be eco-friendly, reusable, and not detrimental to the environment. It will be our way of giving back.
On average, totally depending on what your day consists of, (I won't throw any numbers out there) but we probably use a 'ton' of plastic. If you grab a Starbucks coffee in the morning and throw away the cup, if you eat lunch to-go and use plastic forks, knives, and plates, and for dinner you go out to dinner but wash your hands using paper towels. These materials are everywhere in our lives and the numbers are insane on how much we throw away. (google on your own if you want to know specifics, you're smart people). But just think about how much you use on an average day, then multiply that by 330 million. By 7 billion. That’s a lot of materials going to waste in the trash that go towards landfills. That for some reason stay there and who knows what happens to them after that. I don't know, sit and contaminate our soil? Great. So at least, for one week, lets stop our personal use and spread the word on recycling, reusing, and reducing our waste. Start by carrying your water bottle around and filling it up at fountains, sinks and however else you need to. Bring a fork with you when you know you're going out to lunch that day at work. When you head into the super market, fill mason jars up with fruits, vegetables, grains and whatever else to minimize your foot print. It's these simple steps that will make the slightest difference, but difference it will.
This week will be challenging. It will make us think outside the box, and make us look weird performing daily activities. People will assume we're weird. They will put the hippie label on us. But that's ok. Educate them. Inform them. Help them understand, and maybe that will be enough.
BONUS CHALLENGE: Do 50 air squats during the day, every day. You can do them together, you can do them apart, in the morning or at night. It doesn't matter. Get them done. If you already have air squats in your workout, do 50 more just because.
REFLECTION: This challenge was almost impossible. In America we are so dependent on paper and plastic. From fast food restaurants, to bathrooms to sit downs, everywhere you go on a daily basis has some sort of paper or plastic products. Even though I failed this week to completely not use paper or plastic, it was my realization that was a success. I noticed everywhere how bad businesses were using plastic or paper products. With a business in mind however, it makes complete sense. Plastics are cheap for high profit margins. Customers throw it away which eliminates cleaning costs. Businesses today are completely focused on profit. You get excited when you walk into a place that is conscious about their footprint. What they use, how they use it, the way they recycle. You get a joy in your stomach that tells you maybe there is a hope to continue to enjoy a clean planet. I started to carry around a reusable fork and my Hydroflask wherever I went. I received weird looks from others and happy looks from a few. I refused to have a straw come out with my water, and when only plastic cups were available, hell I ordered a beer that came in a glass. I avoided places that wrapped things in plastics, gave out paper plates and plastic silverware. I had to deny meals that people offered me because the only option was plastic products; a lot of days I skipped lunch altogether. Oddly enough, I tended to only eat dinner and just skipped breakfast and lunch. Cheaper too. I did fail at times, in instances such as I had a starburst that was sitting on the table and realized only after that I just threw away a plastic wrapper. I would order food only to think to myself as I sat down to eat it, I didn't have my spork with me and didn't want to waste the food I just ordered. But the positive from all this, is it made me conscious of my decisions and the 'throw away' world that’s all around us. People will do anything to save a few cents in any business model (who can blame them) and we're just throwing away resources and cluttering up our planet with no regard of the consequences. It's really terrible when you stop and think about it. I am wondering if you had the same experiences I have had or at least similar ones. I am extremely curious on who had complete opposite experiences maybe elsewhere around the globe.
The point of this week was to create a realization in your life. We waste millions of plastic and paper material every day. The bright side is people are starting to care and dedicating their lives to make a difference. Innovating reusable plastics, papers and other harmful products so that we can make major differences for our planet and our future generations. I am stoked to see how our generation and the next, will change the world for the better. We just have to stay conscious of what were doing.