Pleasure vs. Productivity?

In a society that celebrates exhaustion as a badge of honor, admitting you need to stop or take a break feels like failure. Entrepreneurs sleep five hours. Executives are answering emails at 11 PM. Parents are "always busy." And you've probably internalized that your worth is directly proportional to your exhaustion. This is a widespread and inefficient approach to productivity in our society. 

“Pleasure, on the other hand, has a bad reputation.  But this prejudice is unfounded, since more and more studies show that people who are able to enjoy what they do feel better than those who enjoy it less,” according to psychologist and researcher Katharina Bernecker of the University of Zurich and the Bern School of Pedagogy in Switzerland.

Moreover, those who live the "good life" achieve as much as others, sometimes even more, and reach their goals as well as or even better than others, while also allowing themselves more time for the small pleasures of everyday life. 

All of this has a neurochemical basis: your willpower is a finite resource, or what Roy Baumeister calls "ego depletion."  In other words, every decision, every resistance to temptation, every act of self-discipline depletes the same tank.

In Baumeister's experiment, participants resisted eating freshly baked cookies. Afterward, they attempted to solve an impossible puzzle. Result: Those who resisted the cookies gave up 50% faster on the puzzle.

 

What does Baumeister's experiment show us?

- If you spent the morning in meetings, you'll be exhausted in terms of decision-making.

- In the afternoon, he no longer has enough willpower to work on an important project, for example.

•       Less rest = less ability to make good decisions
• The solution: I'm not going to tell you to throw out your New Year's resolutions, but if you think about it, they're often synonymous with effort and discipline. Instead, consider taking regular breaks to recharge your energy .

 

The neurochemistry of pleasure and mental balance:

What happens in your brain when you rest, play, and enjoy yourself

Instead of being a work machine, the brain is a survival and reward system that has been evolving.  The problem is that he is currently connected to notifications, social media, and deadlines. 

Let's see what happens in your neurobiology when you create space for enjoyment.

 

NEUROTRANSMITTERS OF PLEASURE

DOPAMINE: Motivation and Reward

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that has been mistakenly interpreted as pleasure.  In reality, it is motivation, the drive, that feeling of "I want that," and it manifests itself in two ways:

 

MODE 1: Anticipation Dopamine (the search, the expectation)

            •         When planning a vacation

            •         When you work towards a goal

            •         When you're waiting for a message from someone

            •         When you upload a post and wait for likes

The sensation that manifests itself is one of eagerness, energy, focus

MODE 2: Dopamine of Consummation (the reward)

            •         When vacation finally arrives

            •         When the project ends

            •         When you receive the message

            •         When he sees the likes

The feeling that manifests is one of satisfaction, relaxation, well-being

 

Chronic work WITHOUT rest creates a dopamine crash.

Here's the toxic cycle:

Day 1-7:  You work nonstop

          ↓

          High anticipation dopamine

          (promise of future reward)   

Days 8-14: Still going strong

          ↓

          Your brain adapts (habituation)

          It takes MORE work to equal dopamine

Day 15+:  Even working no longer produces dopamine

          ↓

          You feel EMPTY while you work

          Anhedonia: Inability to enjoy anything

 

This happens because the brain, in order to survive, constantly adjusts its dopamine baseline. If you always have "anticipation of reward" (I'll finish this tomorrow, I'll rest tomorrow), eventually that future promise evaporates like a budget.

How to Restore Dopamine Sensitivity

STEP 1: Create spaces of "No Anticipation"

When you take a break without thinking about what you have to do next, your brain can:

            •         Reset the dopamine baseline

            •         Reconnect with simple rewards

For example:

            •         Bad: Taking a 30-minute break while reading and thinking about emails

            •         Good: Take a 30-minute break reading an engrossing novel (without thinking about anything work-related)

 

STEP 2: The "Dopamine Detox" (It's not what you think)

It's not about deprivation, but about varying your sources of dopamine.

Some low-intensity sources that restore dopamine sensitivity:

            •         Read without pressure

            •         Walking in nature

            •         Talk face to face, without a phone

            •         Painting, drawing, playing music

            •         Cook something delicious

            •         Consensual sex (yes, it's important)

 These activities generate real (not artificial) dopamine and restore your ability to enjoy them.

 

STEP 3: The Reward That Matters

The most potent dopamine comes from:

            •         Real (not fictional) achievements

            •         Genuine social connection (not likes)

            •         Visible progress (not vague promises)

            •         Competence (being good at something)

When you rest and then GO BACK to work, your dopamine is recharged because there is a real reward for rest: in this case, better focus.

 

SEROTONIN: Molecular Wellbeing

Serotonin is the neurotransmitter of stable well-being, balanced mood, and the feeling of "everything is alright".

Unlike dopamine (energy), serotonin is contented calm.

Where is it produced? 90% in the gut (which is why it's known as the "second brain") and 10% in the brain

 

What increases serotonin?

 

Activity	Mechanism	Duration Hours
Direct sunlight	UV activates producing neurons	At least 20-30 minutes a day (ideally 2 hours to absorb vitamin D)
Physical exercise	Muscle movement → brain signals	2-4 hours
Positive social interaction	Validation and connection	Hours
Being in nature	Light + movement + clean air	At least 30 minutes
Massage/touch contact	Stimulation of pleasure receptors	At least 20 minutes
Foods rich in tryptophan	Serotonin precursor via intestinal synthesis	3-6 hours
Complex carbohydrates	They facilitate the absorption of tryptophan	3-6 hours
Fermented foods/probiotics	Improves microbiota - local serotonin synthesis	Days (cumulative effect)

 

Key Foods for Serotonin

Tryptophan, an essential amino acid, is the building block of serotonin. Your body cannot produce it; it must come from food.

 

Here is the Top 10 list of foods high in tryptophan:

            1          chicken breast (800-1000 mg per 100g)

            2          turkey (450-550 mg per 100g)

            3          eggs (180 mg per unit)

            4          cheese (400-600 mg per 100g)

            5          milk (70-80 mg per cup)

            6          nuts (230 mg per 100g)

            7          pumpkin seeds (575 mg per 100g)

            8          chickpeas (300 mg per cooked cup)

            9          tofu (180 mg per 100g)

            10       banana (10 mg + B vitamins for synthesis)

 

The Critical Fact: Protein + Carbohydrates

I know that I'm always promoting the ideal consumption of protein and, in fact, a low-carb diet.  However, know that carbohydrates are not the enemy, especially in this case. 

Eating ONLY protein with tryptophan is not enough, but why?

Tryptophan competes with other amino acids to cross the blood-brain barrier. If you eat protein alone, other amino acids "win the race" and you miss out on this valuable nutrient.

 

THE SOLUTION:

Consume your protein + complex carbohydrates together:

An example is consuming chicken breast + brown rice

The result is that carbohydrates will cause an insulin spike → insulin removes other amino acids from the blood and thus tryptophan has the opportunity to win the race.

 

Other practical examples might be:

 

            •         🥚 Eggs + wholemeal bread + avocado

            •         🍗 Chicken + sweet potato + broccoli

            •         🍝 Whole wheat pasta + tuna

            •         🥜 Hummus (chickpeas + tahini) + pita bread

 

Probiotics and Gut Microbiota

 

The surprising fact: Your gut also produces serotonin. In fact, it produces 90% of your body's total serotonin.

 

You have gut bacteria that convert tryptophan into serotonin.  These bacteria (microbiota) feed on fiber, and this is what keeps it diverse and healthy.  But if your gut microbiota is “sick” it cannot produce serotonin.

 

 

Some foods that improve and maintain a healthy gut microbiota:

 

Food	Benefit
Natural yogurt   Kefir   Sauerkraut   Kimchi   Miso   Kombucha tea   Banana   Garlic/onion	Live lactobacilli   10-60 probiotic strains   Active fermentation   Fermentation + capsaicin   Enzymes + live bacteria   Organic acids + probiotics   Resistant starch = food for good bacteria Inulin = prebiotic

 

 

How to learn to enjoy the little things that life offers us

First, you have to identify what makes you feel good, or at least what reduces bad feelings you might be experiencing, and this differs from person to person.  It may be that, while I enjoy going for a run, you are more satisfied lying down on a sofa to rest for a while.

Second, be present: whatever activity or non-activity you choose, be there and don't let yourself be distracted by your phone, notifications, or the to-do list running through your head.

 Then, give yourself permission to experience positive things, as Bernecker advises:  “Many consider pleasure, enjoyment or fun as a waste of time, a distraction, laziness and even selfishness.  However, the ability to take advantage of opportunities is fundamental to your well-being and health, making you more resilient to stress.”

Finally, we have become accustomed to being busy, to doing "useful or important" things, making it difficult for us to take a moment to recover.  So, as you begin to make space for yourself to enjoy yourself, or at least take breaks, reserve those special moments to do things that recharge you, renew you, and help you refocus. 

Doing what you love is the best motivation and it's what allows us to endure in a project, a job, a profession.  People who enjoy what they do more easily achieve their long-term goals.