What are You Building?

After his Achilles injury, Kirk Cousins went to the LEGO store and loaded up on sets so he could build with his kids. He said it brought back this nine-year-old version of himself he’d kind of forgotten about, and that sitting on the floor building stuff together was a surprisingly big source of joy. Not a side hustle, not “performance training” — just play, with his kids, for no other reason than it’s fun.

On the science side, a big study of 1,399 adults found that people who regularly engaged in enjoyable leisure activities (hobbies, social activities, time in nature, etc.) had lower blood pressure, lower cortisol (stress hormone), lower BMI and waist size, and better overall physical function, along with better mood and less depression.

In other words, making time for things you genuinely enjoy isn’t extra or selfish — it literally shows up in your body and your mental health.