My Month of (Almost) No Internet

By Leo Babauta

I’m starting 2014 with the hardest month of my Year of Living Without so far: no Internet all day.

OK, let’s rephrase that — I’m not going to use the Internet all day, except to post stuff to my blogs/sites or for programming. And for an hour at 5pm each day.

That means from morning until 5pm, I can’t check email, read stuff online, do admin stuff for my business online, go to my bank websites, look stuff up.

To be clear, here are the only exceptions:

What will I be doing all day instead of using the Internet? Mostly these things:

  1. Meditating. Every morning, first thing.
  2. Learning Spanish. I’m spending about 30 minutes each morning studying Pimsleur Spanish.
  3. Programming. As mentioned, I’m going to spend about half a day every day learning Javascript and building a web app. The main purpose is to learn how to learn programming, so I can teach my kids. But also so I can build cool stuff.
  4. Writing. I’m going to write my blog posts and other content offline. I’ll also be working on my new print book, Zen Habits.
  5. Exercising. I’m planning to work out every weekday at noon.
  6. Spending time with family. Reading with my kids, playing with them, etc.
  7. Drinking tea. I’ve been having tea at 4pm with the kids.

I’ve modified my etc/hosts file to block my biggest online distractions.

I’ll report back to all of you at the beginning of next month — wish me luck!

Oh, and yes, I wrote this offline.

December: A Month Without Refined Carbs

In December, for my Year of Living Without I went most of the month without refined carbs. That means no sugar, white flour, white rice, white potatoes. It was mostly easy, as I’ve been eating this way for about 6 months (with some exceptions here and there).

Here’s what I learned:

Overall, not one of my harder months. I’m planning on eating this way most of the time, with a few guilt-free bites here and there when the occasion arises (birthdays, etc.). I’ve learned that some sweets/flour are totally fine, as occasional treats, not as a main staple of my diet.

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