It took me 50 years to learn why I couldn’t achieve anything remarkable. I made so many changes in my life but nothing would stick with me. I ended up going back to my old habits.
I lacked discipline!
Discipline is the foundation of achieving long-term success. It is the bridge between setting goals and realizing them. Without discipline, we are left with mere intentions and unfulfilled dreams.
And how do you cultivate discipline?
You build habits. One step at a time. Building habits is a crucial step in developing discipline, and it is essential to understand how habits can help us stay motivated and on track.
How Habits Can Build Discipline
Habits are repetitive behaviors that we perform automatically, often without conscious thought. By building good habits, we can create a routine that helps us stay disciplined and focused on our goals. Here are some ways habits can build discipline:
Consistency: Habits help us establish a consistent routine, which is essential for building discipline. When we perform a task consistently, it becomes second nature, and we are more likely to stick to it.
Accountability: Habits hold us accountable for our actions. When we commit to a habit, we are more likely to follow through, even when we don’t feel like it.
Self-control: Habits help us develop self-control, which is a critical component of discipline. By resisting temptations and staying focused on our goals, we build our self-control.
Motivation: Habits can motivate us to take action, even when we don’t feel like it. When we see progress and results from our habits, we become more motivated to continue.
How to Stay Motivated
Staying motivated is crucial for building discipline and achieving long-term success. Here are some tips to help you stay motivated:
Set clear goals: Setting clear goals helps us stay focused and motivated. When we know what we want to achieve, we are more likely to stay on track.
Track progress: Tracking progress helps us see how far we’ve come and motivates us to continue.
Celebrate small wins: Celebrating small wins helps us stay motivated by recognizing our progress and achievements.
Find accountability: Finding accountability, whether it’s a friend, family member, or mentor, helps us stay motivated and on track.
How to Get Back on Track When You’ve Missed Deadlines
Missing deadlines can be discouraging, but it’s not the end of the world. Here are some tips to help you get back on track:
Don’t give up: Don’t give up, even when you’ve missed a deadline. Instead, focus on getting back on track as soon as possible.
Reassess your goals: Reassess your goals and adjust your schedule accordingly.
Break it down: Break down large tasks into smaller, manageable chunks to help you stay focused and motivated.
Seek support: Seek support from friends, family, or a mentor to help you stay motivated and on track.
“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” – Jim Rohn
Recommended Books on Discipline
Here are some recommended books on discipline that can help you build habits and achieve long-term success:
“Atomic Habits” by James Clear: This book provides a comprehensive guide to building good habits and breaking bad ones.
“The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg: This book explores the science behind habits and provides practical tips for building good habits.
“Discipline Equals Freedom” by Jocko Willink: This book provides a no-nonsense approach to building discipline and achieving success.
Remember, discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment!
If you were to suddenly begin to walk briskly every day, you will not lose weight.
Surprised? I found this out the hard way. I was so pumped to lose weight by walking that I bought my Apple Watch and used Strava
When it comes to exercising for weight loss, understanding the correct heart rate is crucial. This is important for obese individuals to know the ideal heart rate to keep you in the fat burning zone.
How Much Should I Walk for Weight Loss?
First, how much should you walk.
Aim to walk at a moderate pace for at least 30 minutes, five days a week. This can help burn approximately 150 calories per day (depending on your weight), which can contribute to a calorie deficit and support weight loss. The key here is caloric deficit. So please don’t go home after the walk and gobble up a cake.
Calculating Heart Rate for Obese Individuals
To maximise your weight loss, aim to have your heart rate within the fat burning zone. Star by calculating your maximum heart rate = subtract your age from 220. For example, I am 50-years-old. So my maximum heart rate is 220 – 50 = 170 beats per minute (bpm). The fat-burning heart rate zone is typically between 50% and 70% of your maximum heart rate. So for me, I should be aiming to keep my heart rate between 85 beats and 120 beats per minute.
Here is a table of estimated fat-burning heart rates for obese males and females:
Age
Male Fat-Burning Heart Rate (bpm)
Female Fat-Burning Heart Rate (bpm)
20-29
120-140
115-135
30-39
115-135
110-130
40-49
110-130
105-125
50-59
105-125
100-120
60-69
100-120
95-115
Five Key Points to Focus on While Walking
Heart Rate: Monitor your heart rate regularly to ensure you are within the fat-burning zone. You can use a wrist monitor or chest strap to track your heart rate.
Pace: Aim for a brisk pace of at least 100 steps per minute to reap substantial fitness benefits. But dont over do it.
Breathlessness: If you can talk comfortably with some breathlessness, you are likely walking at a moderate but brisk pace. If you can’t talk easily, the pace is probably vigorous.
Posture: Maintain good posture while walking to engage your core and burn more calories. Keep your head up, shoulders relaxed, and engage your core muscles.
Consistency: Aim to walk at least 30 minutes per session, three to four times a week, to see significant weight loss and fitness improvements.
Very Important – You’re not in Danger!
Your fat burning zone is very important. Even if you think its too slow of a walk for you, keep at it – increase the duration, if possible. Keeping your body in the fat burning zone tells your body that you’re not in danger and its safe for your body to consume the fats. If you reach the higher heart beat range, you body will think you’re in danger and stop burning fat because it knows, from our cave man days, that you will need the fats later when the danger is over.
Here is 3 practical tips to lose one kilogram of your weight within a week. Try it and you’ll be amazed. No artificial flavours. Just some determination and consistency.
Table of Contents
Tip 1: Control Your Meal Portions
Weight control is simply using more calories than you consume. I first discovered this when I had finish a salad meal with my boss and I was complaining to him that I still didnt feel I was full. And he said, “Good. You should be feeling not full. When you have eaten until you felt full, that is a sign that you’ve eaten too much. This is because of the delayed response from your stomach to your brain saying that you’re full. Nothing in our body is instant expect for pain.”
That made a lot of sense to me. I know I can always get food whenever I want. So this made a lot of sense. So now I eat a little less.
Tip 2: More Fibre and Protein
Now I eat more fibre rich foods, like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains into my meal. It’s a tough change but its a change for the positive as these food keep my tummy quite for a longer time.
I also include good protein portions with each meal, such as lean meats, fish, eggs, dairy products, legumes, and tofu, to support muscle retention and control hunger.
Tip 3: Water over Wine and Beer (and Red Bull)
I now consume 2 litres of water per day. It’s mainly because I dont want to end up like my uncle, hooked 3 times per week to a dialysis machine. What is life then? Wine and beer and other energy drinks contain too much sugar for my body at this point in time. As much as I love them, I will pay the price eventually. So water it is for now, with an occasional Himayalan Salt to keep up my electrolytes.
I couldn’t believe it when I found that the first thing I had to do to accelerate my productivity and focus was to sleep more.
Sleep More
I know how you feel. I felt so angry when I first read this in Nick Littlehales, “Sleep: Redefine your rest for Success in Work, Sports and Life”. Nick is a sleep coach for elite athletes (look at me, reading techniques for elite athletes). One of the things I learned was understanding my circadian rhythms and chronotypes – about my internal body clocks and sleep patters. This, using my Apple Watch, really helped me understand how long it took me to go into REM sleep, which is needed for my memories to form and connect; and to Deep Sleep, when my muscles and tissues begin to heal (this is also when some people accidentally wake up and find that they cannot move their bodies – also known as Sleep Paralysis [Afraid to Sleep]). Nick explains about other stuff which I don’t really implement like planning my sleep around 90-minutes cycles instead of 8-hours. I am not an elite athlete, so I don’t practise this. Nevertheless, I found this book to be a good source of basic knowledge.
I am pretty sure you are aware that during sleep, your brain processes and consolidates memories, clears waste, and regulates emotions. Getting enough sleep improves your cognitive performance, boosts mood, and sharpens your focus and concentration. Basically, having adequate sleep, not overdosing on it, gives you enough energy to make your feel you can take on the world. For me, it makes me think clearer at work, and I can focus well. In the beginning, I felt lousy going to bed earlier when I had so many things to do. But after a few weeks, I found that I could do most things at work because I was sharper and calmer.
Track Your Sleep
Use an app to track your sleep. If you don’t track it, you will not know how well your sleep was or how long it took you to get into REM or Deep Sleep, your breathing rate and so forth. These are important vitals for you to check. Only then you can either learn how to improve them yourselves or speak to your doctor about this.
Use a smartwatch like Apple Watch or Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 to help track your sleep rhythm throughout the night. This really paid off for me as I realised that I had restless leg syndrome when I slept. My Apple Watch showed that I wasn’t getting enough Deep Sleep and explained several causes, one of it being the restless leg syndrome.
Tips for Improving Mental Clarity through Better Sleep
Here’s a few things that I did to sleep better:
Established a Consistent Sleep Schedule: I slept at the same time every night, weekdays and weekends. This helped my body to wake up at the right time feeling fresh.
Create a Sleep-Conducive Environment: This was hard for me to do as I have a beautiful view outside my window. But I had to shut my blinds and make my room pitch black with the airconditioner set at 22 Celcius. Then I slept well. Not to mention have a comfortable mattress and pillows to promote relaxation, especially when I have back pains.
Avoid Stimulants Before Bedtime: I used to drink tea before sleeping. I had to abandon that. Caffein was preventing me from sleeping.
Practice Relaxation Techniques: Engage in calming activities, such as meditation, deep breathing, or reading, to help the mind and body relax before sleep.
Monitor Sleep with some Electronics: Use an electronic gadget to track sleep patterns, identify areas for improvement, and make adjustments to the sleep routine accordingly. It makes a huge difference. You cant change what you cant track.
Sleep Apnea
I have recently been diagnosed with Sleep Apnea. I guess it comes with age and weight. If left untreated, sleep apnea can lead to brain damage due to the lack of oxygen. This is a prevalent syndrome for overweight men. Get yourself a good CPAP machine. This will save your life.
Being half a century old makes you ponder on what you have done all these years and is it enough?
Are you happy with what you have done?
Are you able to cope with the future?
Can you make a change?
This blog is about my pursuit to making a change.
I have tried making drastic changes over the years, but it never worked. Then I read Atomic Habits by James Clear and how making small changes helps. He gave an example of the British cycling team of how it went from a nobody to world beaters.
In 2003, Dave Brailsford was appointed as the director of performance. unlike previous directors who came in and made sweeping changes, Dave implemented something called “marginal gains“. Marginal gains is tiny improvements that the cyclists could make over time.
Brailsford and his coaches began by making small adjustments to the team’s equipment and training methods. They redesigned bike seats for better comfort, used alcohol on tires for improved grip, and even tested different fabrics in a wind tunnel to optimize aerodynamics. These small improvements were not limited to the obvious areas; they also extended to overlooked details such as the type of massage gels used for muscle recovery, the best way to wash hands to prevent colds, and even the type of pillows and mattresses used by the riders to ensure better sleep.
The key to the success of this strategy lies in the compounding effect of these small improvements. By improving each aspect by just 1%, the cumulative effect led to significant gains over time. As James Clear explains, “if you can get 1 percent better each day for one year, you’ll end up thirty-seven times better by the time you’re done.” This approach not only led to improved performance but also helped the team to sustain their success over time.
The results of this strategy were nothing short of remarkable. Within five years, the British cycling team dominated the road and track cycling events at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, winning 60% of the available gold medals. They repeated this success at the 2012 London Olympics, setting nine Olympic records and seven world records. The team’s success continued, with British riders winning multiple Tour de France titles in the following years.
The British cycling team’s example serves as a powerful reminder that small, consistent improvements can lead to significant and lasting success. It highlights the importance of patience, persistence, and a focus on building systems rather than relying on single, dramatic changes. As James Clear notes, “time magnifies the margin between success and failure. It will multiply whatever you feed it. Good habits make time your ally. Bad habits make time your enemy.“
Hence, this is my journey. It start’s today. Everything I am doing to make myself better will be listed in these pages.
The day this blog stops, I would have breath in my last breath.
