Fit Rich Life

Newsletter #21

Weekly Tips, Tools & Strategies to alchemize your Fitness, Money & Life
Newsletter Archive

“Keep away from people who belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.”

— Mark Twain, American Writer

Greetings my fellow Life Alchemists!

I am highly inspired by people who continue pursuing a calling or interest for years even when there is little public success being achieved. In Episode 51 of the Fit Rich Life Podcast, I speak with Cole Hastings, a now popular Self-Improvement YouTuber (~579K subscribers at the time of writing this) who created weekly YouTube Videos for 3 years before he even reached 1k subscribers. Now that is a dedication to the craft. If you have any interest in building a YouTube Channel or pursuing another creative endeavor this is an episode you don't want to miss.

Without further ado, let's proactively build your Fit Rich Life—FRL! Your weekly dose of actionable tips, tools & strategies to alchemize your Fitness, Money & Life to the Next Level.

FITNESS: Mobility work should be a part of your weekly training.
If you're currently doing little-to-no mobility training this is your wakeup call. The older you get the more important this is, but the earlier the age you start the better. I usually do 10-30 minutes of mobility work before every workout. This primes my body for my workout by getting all the muscles to start firing, warms up my body & even helps me recover from the previous workout the day before much faster. I mostly do a combination of foam rolling, dynamic stretching, & a few minutes with my Theragun Pro. The key is to focus on working out the stiffness from the previous workout while giving attention to the places you typically have a limited range of motion. This is often the opposite motion of your most common movement patterns (ahem, like how you're constantly bent over a keyboard or smartphone). "Becoming a Supple Leopard" by Dr. Kelly Starrett is a fantastic resource if you need ideas on how to improve your mobility, resolve pain & prevent injury.

MONEY: What is your ideal emergency fund?
There are a lot of theories & prescriptions out there about what the exact amount of money you should keep in your emergency fund should be. Some say 3 months of living expenses, some say 6 months. I say keep whatever amount allows you to sleep peacefully at night. If another pandemic hit, the stock market crashed & you lost your job what amount would allow you to continue to sleep well despite all of that happening? For me, that is 1-2 years, but I'm very risk-averse. The point is to feel out your level of risk adversity & choose a number of months of living expenses that will give you peace of mind. P.S. Right now there are many solid financial institutions paying 4-5% on cash accounts with FDIC insurance so make sure your Emergency Fund is also earning some interest. I'm a fan of Wealthfront (no affiliation), but there are plenty of other places offering great rates right now. 

LIFE: What is the pain you love enough to keep doing it?
When trying to figure out the work that you are truly meant to do in this lifetime it is highly beneficial to identify the type of work-pain that you actually enjoy & then position yourself to do more of that. For example, I love writing, creating content, selling & teaching but it is hard work. They all take a lot of mental muscle. I liken it to working out. Lifting weights & challenging your body through exercise is painful, but it's the kind of pain you learn to love if you're lucky. What is the work that you can love deeply even if it's mentally, emotionally & even spiritually taxing? What is the work you could continue to do even if it is a heavy lift? This strategy will eventually lead you to the thing that you're meant to do.

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Sending you all lots of Energy & plenty of Dragon Magic!

Your Fitness, Money & Life Coach,

Justin "Dragon" Carl