What's in store for today:

• 3 things I do when I'm hungry (and how to stay full even when you're in a caloric deficit).
• Avoid skipping this exercise if you want longevity and strength in your life.
• My top clients strategies to creating winning streaks in their fitness (while building unstoppable momentum).

A short excerpt from a new ebook I'm writing:

(I'd love hear your thoughts on this; hit reply below email).

Excerpt:

The average person is overweight, unhealthy, and unhappy.

When you look at the statistics for health, it’s estimated that by 2030 over 50% of Americans will be overweight or obese.

The rest of the world will follow close behind us.

Unless, you and I stand up.

So what’s a high performance vegan?

It's a person who eats plants. They lead by example and are a health role model for their family and community.

It's a human who is healthy in each core domain (covered below). They also make a positive impact with their life.

Anyone can become a high performance vegan.

It doesn’t mean you need to live in the gym or kitchen.

It doesn’t mean you even need to be fully plant based (although many choose to).

It doesn’t mean you’re a perfect ‘vegan’ either (no such thing).

What it does mean:

It means you take ownership of your health and life.

It means you use plants partially or fully to fuel your body.

It means you become an embodiment of health and strength for yourself and others.

It’s open to existing vegans, aspiring vegans, or humans who just want to add more plants.

A high performance vegan is a health role model.

In a society that desperately needs more healthy role models, this is your opportunity to step forward.

We need you at your best.

So let’s cover the 5 core categories of a high performance vegan.

This will serve as your roadmap and blueprint moving forward.

Here’s a quick overview:

1. Deep health
2. Plant based nutrition
3. High performance fitness
4. Depth psychology
5. Self mastery

You could visualize it better with this graphic (which models Maslow’s pyramid of self actualization).

Self mastery

⬆️

Depth psychology

⬆️

High performance fitness

⬆️

Plant-based nutrition

⬆️

Deep health

The path towards mastery starts with the first step.

Yet, most of us focus on the wrong order of priorities in our health and fitness.

Macros and workouts are just a piece of the puzzle.

Understanding your psyche and inner world is part of self-mastery.

Growth comes in waves.

It’s not a linear journey.

Regardless of where you fall in your self-mastery journey, there will be challenges.

Pitfalls will appear.

That’s all part of the hero’s journey.

You are the hero of this story.

I’ll serve as your guide.

But ultimately this is your path to walk.

Let’s dive in.

Lesson: I spent the bulk of my life trying to change the world. Today, I'm focused on changing myself.

Here's Your 1-3-1 Friday:

1.) 3 things I do when I feel hungry

When I feel hungry, I default to snacks and overeating.

Neither of these worked out well for me.

Instead of falling into these pitfalls, do these 3 things:

#1 Focus on hydration

Most of us confuse dehydration for hunger.

The reality is most of us are dehydrated.

When you're dropping body fat, your hunger levels will be higher than usual due to eating less food.

But eating less doesn't substitute for drinking less.

60% of your body is water.

80% of your muscles is water.

Water is the foundation for life.

Aim for 1/2 -2/3 of your bodyweight in ounces per day to stay hydrated.

If you're lifting weights and working out, err on the side of more (since you'll need this to recover).

Another way to increase your hydration is using the Hyper Hydration Protocol (inspired by A.W.):

How it works:

• Start each day with a glass of lemon water (16 ounces)
• Squeeze 1/2 a freshly squeezed lemon into room temperature water
• Do not eat or drink anything afterwards for 15-30 minutes (for extra liver health boost)
• You can increase protocol to 32 ounces and use a full lemon (my current approach)

Lemons have vital minerals and nutrients that hydrate your cells at a deep level.

Even if you're not drinking enough water throughout your day, this simple practice can change your life.

Oh - and it also supports with your weight loss efforts since a healthier liver is a stronger liver, which makes it easier to break down fats.

#2 Eat stomach filling foods

This is simple.

Choose whole foods from the soil and earth.

Potatoes, yams, fruits, vegetables, and more can fill your stomach fast.

The key here is not to change them from their natural state.

The reason potatoes (especially white ones) get a bad rap is because they're doused with fats (extra oil anyone?).

Fats are what jack up the calories and chloresterol.

Not whole foods.

Does that mean you can't use fats?

No, it just means you need to be mindful of them.

The first step would be to choose healthier fats and oils (avocado, hummus, olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, nuts, and seeds).

The second step would be to use them in moderation or at a minimum.

Fats have 2x the amount of calories as carbohydrates and protein.

It also takes the twice the amoutn of work to breakdown fats then it does for protein and carbs.

So eating whole foods will keep your hunger at bay.

Try eating a bowl of potatoes (plain or minimally changed) and see how hungry you are.

Even more filling if you pair potatoes with tempeh and a side of sauteed veggies.

That's what I'm talking about.

#3 Slow down with each bite

I used to diminish this tip.

I grew up as a fast eater.

It was the way I was conditioned.

I was also taught to eat all my food.

'Don't leave food on your plate. There's people who are starving and need this food.'

Guilt and shame were projected on me as a child.

(as they are on most of us).

As a result, I always ate all my food.

Even if I was already full.

Most of us are severely disconnected to our bodies and how we feel.

The more awareness you can bring to your fullness the easier it becomes to see that you may be full already.

When you eat slowly you do several things:

• You improve digestion. 30-40% of it happens when you chew your food.
• Eating slower helps you feel fuller faster. It signals your body that food is coming, unlike our usual habit of wolfing it down.

Food is a social event.

It's emotional and meant to be shared with others.

Slow down and enjoy your meals with your family and friends.

This could change your relationship with food and health forever.

2.) Avoid skipping this exercise

While squats and deadlifts are hailed as the best lower body exercises, there’s one exercise that might be better.

Bulgarian split squats.

While not as well-known (or well- liked), bulgarian split squats are the queen of all lower body exercises.

Here’s why:

• Improves stability
• Core strength
• More accessible if you have knee or back pain
• Improve muscle imbalances
• Emphasize quads and glutes (legs and butt)

You also train several ​muscles all at once:​​

• Quads
• Glutes
• Hamstrings
• Calves
• Core, including abdominals and spinal erectors

Another reason split squats are the best is their unique ability to train unilateral movements. Most of us have lost this skill.

If you've stopped playing, running, or doing sports, you likely aren't using one-sided movements enough.

And if you don’t use it - you lose it.

Unilateral training (or single leg training) using split squats is one of the fastest ways to build single-leg strength.

Pound per pound, split squats will create high levels of leg strength.

If you struggle with squats or lower body exercises, split squats are a powerful tool to have in your exercise arsenal.

They’re simple.

They work multiple muscles at once.

Another reason why split squats are so great is because of their real-life transfer.

Exercises that mimic real-life movements are terrific. They are split squats, squats, deadlifts, and rows. They boost your strength in the gym and in life.

That's a powerful combo.

It's why I love split squats and keep using them every year.

Although, to be fair, I don't like them while I'm doing them...

Here’s a great technique video showing the correct form for split squats:

3.) My top clients secrets to creating winning fitness streaks

If you want to create life-long consistency, read this section:

Conssitency is built by repetition.

Repetition is built by taking action.

Action is built by making a decision.

Making a decision starts within.

Once you decide to change, the wheels start turning.

But you have to decide first.

A winning streak is what we call 3 or more days of repeated actions in a row (inside of our ​VFR Accelerator Program​).

The top 10% of our clients who create multiple weeks, months, or even years of winning streaks do these 3 things:

#1 Decide which habit they want to win in

Clarity makes a difference.

If you don't know what you want to change, it'll be hard to change something.

Change starts with clarity.

Get clear on what you want to shift.

Do you want to be fit?

Then, a workout habit can make a positive impact.

Do you want to eat better?

Then, a nutrition habit can be helpful.

Get clear on your goals first,

Then, choose which habit has the biggest leverage to move you the fastest in the direction you want to go.

#2 Commit to making this a non-negotiable part of their life

When you have a doctor's appointment on your calendar, you don't skip this...

(unless you don't like your doctor).

When you put your workout on your calendar it must be the same as an appointment for your child's doctor or a dentisit appointment.

It's non-negotiable.

That means it must happen.

In life you don't get what your wants.

You get your musts.

Your musts are your standards.

They're what you're not willing to go beneath.

That's what makes them so powerful.

95% of humans don't have standards when it comes to health or fitness.

That's why 95% of society struggles with their health and fitness.

They're both closely connected.

As James Clear reminds us:

'You don't rise to the level of your goals; you fall back to the level of standards you have in place.'

#3 Readjust their habits when challenges come up

Flexibilty is a winning characteristic.

The more flexible you are with your habits when challenges come up (which they always will), the easier it is to stay on track.

When I say flexible I don't mean skipping your habits.

I mean readjusting them.

Let's say you planned your strength workout for 5pm.

But then you realize you have to stay later in the office for a new business project with the deadline due tomorrow.

You need to get your workout in.

But you also need to complete this project.

What do you do?

The first reaction from clients I work with (small business owners, self-employed humans, and high achievers) is to focus on work first.

'Alright, I can't do my workout', you sigh.

Instead, do a mini reconciliation each night.

Whatever you committed to doing and was on your calendar, reschedule for another day in the wweek.

Days will get busy.

They will be overwhelming.

Reconcilating your day will honor your committment to your health.

It also helps you stay on track with life and work committments.

Readjust, don't remove.

1 Action Step

There's one more Friday left in this year. How will you end this year strong?

Client of the Week

Ashley leads a busy life.

She's runs a busy school system. She has two kids. She's also doing most of this work by herself.

Yet, Ashley wanted to take care of her body and health.

She valued fitness but she just wasn't prioritizing herself.

So she applied to work together and we got started.

Strategy: We focused on several key areas for her. The first was her workouts.

With her busy schedule, Ashley needed an optimized workout. She runs her school district and cares for her kids.

Creating her non-negotiables here was important.

It was key to choose the right time for her to work out. Then, to design a strength program that fit her schedule, time, and goals.

We started with a 3 day cadence with a total body split and then graduated to a 4 day split for upper and lower spread out evenly throughout the week.

Focusing on her nutrition was another priority.

Learning to track her meals but also raise her self awareness went hand in hand.

Ashley knew her way around the kitchen but her enviroment wasn't supporting her.

Learning which foods made the biggest diffeernce for her health and which ones to remove was one of her success habits.

Finally, we layered in emotional and mental foundations.

Most of us ignore how we feel.

We worked on creating a simple daily habit to acknowledge how she felt and allowed Ashley to start to face her true emotions.

This wasn't easy.

But she started to build momentum with this over the first few months.

Wins: She's lost 18 pounds, 22.5 inches (4 inches in the waist, 4.5 in the hips) and went from 8/10 to a 4/6.

She also gained 5 pounds of muscle while dropping her body fat % significantly.

She became confident and strong in her body.

She's also released relationships that didn't serve her and raised her self-worth.

She was so inspired by our work together she decided to become a personal trainer and help others too.

Plus, she's consistently ran marathons throughout the entire year of 2024 while planning her next big race at Hyrox (fitness races).

She's committed to being her best self.

So can you.

 ​Apply here to get lean​, strong, and healthy using plants. Deadline to apply each month is the 20th. Create your best health and body using a fitness system that's handcrafted for you.

One Quote To Finish Your Week Strong

The end of year is interesting.

We tend to raise ourselves or make ourselves feel bad.

Just notice this tendency inside yourself.

And why is it coming up?

Enjoy your holidays,