Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe. Abraham LincolnYou're buried in work. Who has time to work out?Being a good entrepreneur doesn't just mean making money. It doesn't mean out-grinding the competition, or even loving your work every day. But it does mean:Selling your serviceNegotiatingLeading othersFocusingThinking with a clear headOvercoming procrastination...and more. These are all entrepreneurial skills....
Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.
Abraham Lincoln
You're buried in work. Who has time to work out?
Being a good entrepreneur doesn't just mean making money. It doesn't mean out-grinding the competition, or even loving your work every day. But it does mean:
Selling your service
Negotiating
Leading others
Focusing
Thinking with a clear head
Overcoming procrastination
...and more.
These are all entrepreneurial skills. No one is good at all of these when they start their business; they must develop their skills with practice. But there's a reason almost every successful entrepreneur has a workout routine: exercise can make you instantly better at all of these skills.
Immediately after a workout, it's easier to focus.
Medium-term, a workout can calm you down and help you make objective decisions.
Long-term, working out builds your confidence.
But what workout should you do?
Your workout prescription will change over time. But here's a solid starting point.
- Get yourself a heart rate monitor. Chest strap is best, watches are better than nothing. This is the watch I use. Yours doesn't have to be that fancy.
- Calculate your max heart rate. Here's a video from my gym on how to do it.
- Three days per week, exercise in heart rate Zone 2: about 65-76% of your max heart rate. Here's a video from my gym explaining why Zone 2 is so important.
- For entrepreneurs, Zone 2 is great for helping you calm down; work through problems in your mind; and regulate your blood sugar. If your blood sugar is under control, you'll have fewer mood swings, and make decisions with a clearer head. You won't get "Hangry"--which is just a side effect of riding a carbohydrate roller-coaster. If you can metabolize fat for fuel more easily, you won't get "hangry" anymore.
- Once or twice per week, go as hard as possible. This is heart rate Zone 5. Here's a video from my gym explaining what Zone 5 is, and why it's important.
- For entrepreneurs, Zone 5 is a mental break. It's so hard that you literally can't think about anything else. It's important for longevity, but I have to be honest here - I use Zone 5 workouts to "clear the decks". When I'm stressed out or feeling overwhelmed, a really hard workout gives you a mental break. It also triggers all of those calming endorphins you read about. And, long-term, I swear it gives you perspective on what 'hard' actually means.
- As often as possible, go for a walk. This is heart rate Zone 1, and it's really the entrepreneur's secret weapon. This is really easy exercise - just enough to distract your body and let your mind float. Many experts would call this "flow state", but you might call it "being in the zone".
- You know how your best ideas come while driving, or cutting the grass, or in the shower? That's zone 1 exercise.
- Get a coach. As my business coach says, "If it's important, it gets an appointment." Workouts are the meta-catalyst that make you better at everything else. You can't skip them...but you'll always have more than enough reasons TO skip them.
- My only solution is to make appointments with coaches at my gym. I train in a semi-private setting (there are 3 or 4 of us in the gym at a time, each following our own program, and sharing a coach.) I don't have to think about what to do, or when to show up, or how much effort to put in.
- Other entrepreneurs at my gym show up for group training, and still others do 1:1 for max accountability. I've been doing this long enough that semiprivate coaching is just enough accountability with a mix of seeing my friends.
If you have three hours per week to exercise, do this:
Two Zone 2 sessions and one Zone 5 session.
If you have four hours per week to exercise, do this:
Two zone 2 sessions, one Zone 5 session and an outdoor Zone 1 activity.
If you can squeeze out 5 sessions per week, do this:
Three zone 2 sessions, one Zone 5 session and an outdoor Zone 1 activity.
And, if you're lucky enough to have a dog, get at least a half hour of Zone 1 every single day when you go for a walk. Taking the 6:30am walk time with my dog has been an amazing addition to my health--and made me a better entrepreneur.
Connect with Chris Cooper:
Website - https://businessisgood.com/
