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The High Performance Journal

4 Minute Fridays: How To Improve Your Gut Health, A Hidden Glute Exercise No One Is Doing, Why Most People Should Stop Drinking Coffee In The Afternoon

4 minute fridays Oct 20, 2023

Did you know that over 60% of people don't properly warm up before workouts? And no, saying "The first set is my warmup" doesn't count! You're missing out on maximum gains when you minimize your warmup.

That's why next week I'm launching my 6 Minute Superhuman System. In the course, you'll learn how to increase your strength, speed, power, and stamina while protecting your body from injury in 6 minutes (or less).

If you're interested, click here to get on the early access list. You'll get the lowest price and a free sample warmup flow so you can see exactly what the videos are like.

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I was having a conversation with a friend the other day and it kinda blew my mind.

His name is Dan Martell and he's built and sold a SAAS company for 9 figures, has multiple businesses doing 8 figures in revenue, he's an Iron Man, has a great relationship with his wife, and is a great parent.

So when he talks I listen.

We talked about why people self-sabotage when they achieve things and his answer was that it came down to their level of deserving.

As the saying goes,

"When people are successful they party. When they're unsuccessful they ponder."

On a subconscious level, you will always get what you feel you deserve.

So I asked him what we could do to upgrade our feelings of deservedness.

His answer was that it starts from awareness. What are the limitations that go on in your mind about achieving what you want in life?

Find out what those are and then replace those beliefs with ones that will support the person you want to become.

This conversation reminded me that everything is a mental game. Instead of trying to fix things in the external world, we need to fix what's inside.

We can never outrun our self-image.

That being said...

Here is your 4 Minute Friday:


1. How To Improve Your Gut Health

According to the ​National Institutes of Health​, 60 to 70 million Americans have a digestive disease. This can come in the form of bloating or something more serious like IBS (irritable bowel syndrome).

We're starting to learn more about how your gut's role in breaking down food can impact your body and mind.

This is why it may be helpful to eat probiotic-rich foods or to take a probiotic.

Probiotics have been shown to help relieve symptoms of bloating, and gas​, and improve bowel movements​.

They've also been shown to improve mental health ailments like depression and anxiety​ while also boosting your mood​.

One way to improve your gut health is to eat more probiotic foods like yogurt, kefir, miso, and certain fermented foods.

I find it hard to add all those extra foods to what I'm already doing, so I take a probiotic supplement as they've been proven to carry the benefits listed above.

The one I take is ​Probiotic+ by Mindbodygreen​. They contain a host of all-star microbes and, as stated previously, I know the founder personally and trust the quality he puts into his products.

If you want to improve your gut health you can eat more of the foods listed above or grab Probiotic+ ​here​.

2. The Hidden Glute Exercise No One Is Doing

One of the strongest muscles in your body is your glutes. One of the weakest muscles in the modern desk worker is also the glutes.

Out of all the muscles in your body, the glutes are one of the most important. They generate power, stabilize your hips, protect you from low back pain, and make you an overall athletic badass (no pun intended).

I've mentioned before that one of the best exercises for the glutes has to be the hip thrust.

The second best exercise is one that no one is doing and it's called the B-Stance Romanian Deadlift.

A B-stance is a staggered stance where the big toe of your back leg is even with the heel of your front leg. It's like a hybrid single-leg movement.

Doing an exercise in this way puts more emphasis on your glutes while bringing more symmetry to your lower body.

Here's what it looks like:

You can do this with a barbell or with dumbbells.

Remember that you're staggering your stance, focusing your weight on your front foot, and using your back foot as a kickstand.

Keep in mind that for this exercise you might not go as deep as you would in a regular Romanian deadlift, so be careful not to overdo it.

3. Stop Drinking Your Afternoon Coffee

If you drink coffee at 3, 4, or 5 in the afternoon you need to know that it takes most people 10 hours or more to metabolize caffeine.

When this happens you're not able to go to bed on time or even get a good night of quality sleep, which will affect you the next morning.

This will cause a vicious cycle of needing caffeine to do the work that a good night's sleep should have done the night before.

A good rule of thumb is to have your final coffee at least 12 hours prior to your desired time of going to bed. This ensures that you're giving your body enough time to get rid of the caffeine so you can have a great night's sleep.

If you need to drink a coffee replace it with a decaf and go for nice brisk walks to maintain energy.

NOTE: This does not apply to fast metabolizers of coffee who can drink an espresso and go right to bed. I'm in awe of you btw.

Client of the Week - Eric Bort, Entrepreneur

 
Eric is an entrepreneur who wanted to gain muscle and look buff in t-shirts.

In 16 weeks he added 7 pounds of lean mass while starting to see his abs for the first time since high school.

Our strategy:

  • Increase calorie intake with an emphasis on eating 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight.
  • Increased volume in the gym and focused on getting stronger.
  • Improved his sleeping habits so he could let his body rest and build more muscle.
  • Got his cardio in with walking.


Since working together he's more confident in his body than ever before and loves strength training in the gym.

​If you're an entrepreneur who wants to be confident in your body and increase energy in a way that fits your busy life click here for a strategy call.​ 

One Quote to Finish Your Week Strong


“Ignore the glass ceiling and do your work. If you’re focusing on the glass ceiling, focusing on what you don’t have, focusing on the limitations, then you will be limited.”
 
– Ava DuVernay


Way too often we place a ceiling on what we think we can accomplish. We admire people who have achieved great things not knowing that the reason we admire them is because we have the same capabilities in ourselves.

What are the glass ceilings you're placing on yourself? What would you have to believe to break past them?

- Dan

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