Take a day, maybe two or three, and plan on no plan at all. — How many “perfectionists” do you know who never take the first step? That’s not a perfectionist. That’s an identity of insulation, using perfect as a barricade to uncomfortable improvement. It’s a sad state. An easy trap I’ve fallen into multiple times. And, if you’re honest, maybe you have too. …

Today we’re adding to the experiment with two simple steps — In part ONE of Meal Planning Made Easy, we talked about buying only food you must cook — no snacks or quick fixes. We also challenged ourselves to a week of eating only food we prepare — no drive-thrus. Today we’re adding to the experiment with two simple steps. Enjoy Your Food …

There are multiple ways to fight the abundance of easy, addictive calories, and it starts with planning what to eat before you eat it. — Eating healthy should be easy. Like a calm hike along your favorite trail or quality time in your favorite book, we should enjoy eating to feel our best, gravitate to it, and easily repeat it. But we don’t. Because eating healthy is hard. For starters, most of us are…

You can’t just go in and lift all the weights every day, run all the miles, do all the pull-ups, and hope for the best. — When I was young, I sketched images of superheroes. I named the first “Relentless.” Some could fly, some were fast, and many were invincible. My favorites were omnipotent. Looking back, I was adding characteristics to each hero I wanted. …

Good comes before great, and bad comes before good. — Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung said, “The fool is the precursor to the savior.” When we’re young, we experience this best and know it is universally true. Think of learning to ride a bike. Atrocious at first and often dangerous, we pedal up, desperately attempting to balance, usually with an…

It could be endless check boxes and journaling, weighing and measuring me and my food, quick text messages to my coach, a dozen apps, or even online forums. — Tim Ferriss said, “A person’s success in life can be measured by the number of uncomfortable conversations he or she is willing to have.” Conversations that, insofar as I believe, don’t always need to be with other people. They can be, of course, but some of the most productive…

Sometimes extreme is exactly what I need to do the hard things. — It doesn’t take much to talk ourselves out of doing difficult things. Things like training after a long day at work, getting up before the sun to get steps in, and skipping donuts. That’s why it’s essential to have a plan when the self-talk begins and we start making…

NOT squatting is NOT acceptable. — Pain is a sign. Sometimes it’s a stop sign. Big, red, and ominous it stands, clear as a bright summer day. “Whatever you’re doing,” Pain says, “STOP.” Other times, however, the sign is more like a detour. …

There’s probably some potentially beneficial habit you’ve been rationalizing into obscurity. — Maybe it’s cold plunging. Or weighing and measuring your food. Perhaps it’s getting up long before the sun, going to bed before it sets, or skipping dessert for a week. Or a day. Whatever it is, there’s probably something, some new experiment, some alluring strategy, some potentially beneficial habit…