Health Is Wealth

I’m writing about something today that isn’t directly related to business but in my opinion is vital towards the long-term success of any entrepreneur. Let me tell you why health is wealth. And how optimizing your well-being will make you richer. Richer not just in terms of money, but richer in all important aspects of your life.

I’ve neglected my health for most of my adult life. In my early 20’s, much of my diet was comprised of Nongshim instant noodles. I justified it as being healthy by adding an egg and some spinach. How foolish I was back then.

Sleep was often an afterthought. When I studied abroad in China, I would party all night and go to teach English the following morning, feeling like absolute death. This would often happen several times a week. On my 22nd birthday, my friends brought a bottle of wine over in the morning and I got plastered right before Chinese class. Not one of my finer moments.

You really do feel invincible when you’re in your earlier years. You can drink hard spirits in enormous quantities, eat TV dinners breakfast/lunch/dinner, and pull all nighters to study for exams and still be kinda ok. That charade all comes crashing down eventually, usually starting from your mid 20’s or so.

I started to became very bloated, you can tell especially in my face and torso. Hangovers that lasted only a morning instead lasted for a whole day. Overall, I just felt more sluggish and had brain fog. I basically felt I was operating at 50% capacity.

Fast forward to age 34.

I’ve come into orbit with a lot of successful online entrepreneurs in the past few years. A common theme that I’ve been seeing time and time again is the focus on healthy lifestyle. Proper health management seeps into all facets of your life. You’ll perform better, age more gracefully, and won’t go around walking like a zombie.

After doing research and consulting with other high-performers, I came up with these daily habits and principles that would be the cornerstone of how I operated:

• intermittent fasting (I do a 12pm to 8pm eating window)

• no processed foods/seed oils

• less consumption of sugar and alcohol

• primarily drink water

• exercise through muay thai or calisthenics

• stretching and mobility work

• having a set sleep and wake time

Incorporating these principles and habits into my life has yielded massive benefits for me. I’m in the best shape of my life. The current me would run circles around the 25 year old version of me physically, mentally, financially, and socially.

Let me outline a few of the key benefits that come to mind.

Better physical appearance: You can see a visible difference in my face and torso area. More defined jawline and cheekbones and I don’t look like a sack of potatoes when I wear clothes. Having a visible six pack these days is more of a status symbol than being a millionaire. There are 10x more millionaires than there people with six pack abs (you can Google this yourself). Probably one of the most straightforward ways for most guys to improve overall attractiveness.

Better self-confidence: Looking, feeling, and operating at a higher frequency did wonders for my confidence. Growing up as a kid, I was always a scrawny nerdy type who got picked on at school. Wide-brimmed glasses, bowl cut, and a stick figure body type. The whole nine yards. I carried a lot of these insecurities with me in my later years. Getting in shape helped ameliorate that.

People treat you better: The halo effect is a cognitive bias in which our overall impression of a person influences how we feel and think about their character. Like it or not, we tend to judge people based on physical appearance and deem individuals that are more attractive as more likable, intelligent, or kind. After becoming more jacked, I noticed that guys respected me more. I would get more random looks from girls while going about my day.

Better discipline: Having the wherewithal to consistently stick to the habits necessary for a lower BF% will inherently make you a more disciplined person. Proper diet and regular fitness isn’t something that the masses prioritize. Most people optimize for taste over health in their diet. Or they optimize for what feels good at the time over how they would feel over the long run (think choosing to stay in and watch a Love is Blind marathon over getting swole in the gym).

Less stress: I can’t think of many other methods of combatting stress than with muay thai (or physical activity in general). Hitting the punching bag is so satisfying. The feeling you get after a successful workout sesh is unmatched. Your body releases endorphins when working out, the feel-good neurotransmitter.

More energy: Because I’ve been intermittent fasting, my body is not digesting food all the time and therefore not sluggish. Humans aren’t meant to be digesting food all the time. Back during the caveman days, the men would spend time during the day hunting for food. The fasted state activates our body’s sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for our fight-or flight response. This is why it’s easier to get shit done in the morning if you skip breakfast. You’re harnessing that same bodily function our ancestors did when they hunted for their next kill.

…and less brain fog, better sex, improved mood, more agility, the list goes on.

I wish I knew all this 15 years ago. Who knows where I would be now physically, mentally, and financially. Consistency compounds and your future 60+ year old self will thank you.

Part of me is writing this because I’ve seen personally how neglecting health can really give you a bad time during the later years of life. My grandfather and father only prioritized work. Diet, fitness, and sleep were on the back-burner and they didn’t actively try to remedy their unhealthy habits until they were too old and it was too late. This caused a lot of distress amongst the rest of the family members. Don’t make the same mistake, for the sake of your future children and grandchildren.

I’m not saying you should live life as a no-fun-having robot, everything is ok in moderation. I still enjoy a drink or two from time to time. But it’s important to carefully tow the line between moderation and over-indulgence. Sure you can probably eat processed junk and live a completely sedentary lifestyle and still build a successful business. But will you be able to appreciate the money later on in life? A guy could be a billionaire but if he’s bedridden because of kidney failure, what’s the point?

I’ve always been a fan of split-testing different diets and workouts. If you know anything about marketing, you know that split-testing is paramount towards finding the most optimal results for your advertising campaign. So don’t just take my word for it, try out a new diet and workout routine and stick with it for at least a month. See how you feel. See if a new routine contributes to your life in a positive manner.

My business acumen improved because I could work more efficiently with increased energy and focus. My interpersonal relationships improved. I felt more at peace and less anxiety-ridden. It’s likely that once you see the benefits firsthand, it’ll be hard to go back to your former self.

PS: If you enjoyed this newsletter or have any suggestions for future editions, feel free to shoot me a DM on IG or Twitter! And I would appreciate if you share this with a friend who would benefit!