Perfection
==========

I have always been meticulous. It is my nature. It is also a symptom of the overarching state of being a perfectionist. I have had opportunity to receive chemical treatment. This has always been odd to me. I understand afflictions of the body, of the physical*, naturally have solutions which are physical. My nature -- of being perfectionist -- is a method of my mind, not my mind.

There have been many attempts to solve this with an absolute. I find that an necessarily personal melding of many teaching is best. These are listed in the subsequent sub-sections. This document serves as both a touchstone for myself, and a record for others. My approach will not be the best for you, or for anyone besides myself. I hope that this document can at least guide you to your own solution.


* note: the metaphysics of the mind/body are of course not within scope. This is a very dull generalisation of the commonly associated body/soul distinction.

Perfection as a gradient
------------------------
	Perfection isn't a real concept -- you can't ever have perfection, which is one of its allures. Instead, progress, which is very much not perfection, in the mind of one who is chasing it, is necessary. Very simply:

1. Perfection is unobtainable 
2. You are conceivably not at perfection
3. Your current state is closer to perfection than the preceding state
4. By iteratively increasing the completeness of your state, you are approaching perfection
---
.: By approaching perfection, you are achieving perfection
You can visualise this approach as a gradient:
0 [------+---------> P
	 n
	Where the scale of completeness is modeled as a real number, approaching P (n -> P^-). Each successive step towards completeness increases n, and is thus closer to Perfection. As there is no way to have n=P, the degree of distance justifies n~P. At any meaningful scale, n~P <-> n=P.

Exercise
---------
	Key to maintaining a healthy mind is by exercising, purely for physiological hygiene. Seeing the numbers go up is a nicety, and also gives you an easy meter of 'progress', but I think the more important quality is consistency.

	In this consistency we find conditioning; this is the realm within which we must contextualise exercise. Conditioning is the means by which we impose hygiene physically and mentally. It is asinine to pretend that the Human body is not an athletic one; the physicality of conditioning is in the fulfilment of the potentiality of the body. This is an intrinsically personal journey, but it is one that I firmly believe we must all strive to undertake. You must maintain your body*.

	During this journey, you will also develop the mental hygiene to continue. This is where I feel that focusing only on your lift numbers proves a slippery slope. Plateauing is a very common and expected process, but the sheer drop in 'progress' between the first year or so of lifting** and the rest can be very demotivating. Instead, I've found that focusing on command of the body; of mind-muscle connection, of form, and of the intimate experience of being completely focused and aware of your body a much more forgiving metric. Your form can ALWAYS be improved, and if the dragon you're chasing is one that can be achieved from something as simple as the push-up, you're never in the position where a lift can negatively influence your mental state***. As a consequence of focusing entirely on form (and increasing resistance as required), you're much less likely to hurt yourself.
	Through this approach, conditioning functions as a meditative exercise, with the added benefit of maintaining your physicality. When your body and soul are so intricately intertwined, it's imperative that you maintain both; through conditioning, you accomplish this simultaneously.

*:	This also means being aware of what you put into your body, diet is incredibly important.
**:	So called 'newbie gains'
***:	Unless you hurt yourself, but that's a reasonable exception.

-----------------------
Last Edited: 2024/02/18