Discipline Equals Freedom

“The best way out is always through.” - Robert Frost

I have various banners in my gym:

Strength is a choice

Weak things break

Lift through it

But my favorite is

Discipline equals freedom

Jocko Willink’s mantra is a reminder that motivation comes and goes.  Some days you feel like supporting your family.  Other days you feel like being a loyal friend.  Occasionally, you even wake up before sunrise and feel like knocking out a few hundred burpees.  That’s nice.  But none of those feelings can be relied upon.  Motivation is fickle.  Discipline is what matters.  I don’t skip workouts.  That isn’t who I am.  It doesn’t matter how I feel, so I don’t need to check in with those feelings – I just need the alarm clock to go off.  Cultivate discipline and motivation is just a bit of extra upside from time to time.

Training

This was a great way to start the day – cool, bugless, and sunny.

I got to CrossFit without a minute to spare.  Today’s whiteboard:

Double Trouble (Time)

Partner workout of the day (split as needed)
4 Rounds

• 80 cals on the rower

• 60 wall ball 20 lbs

• 40 toes to bar

Then Muay Thai this afternoon.  I will be very done with the day after that but need a quick recovery turnaround for a big run at 5 AM Sunday then the whole process starts fresh.  Oh and making progress on my grip strength effort, which is one of the few things I actually bother to work on in my own time, since I can do it at my desk during calls.  I ripped my first deck of cards in half yesterday, which I had been working up to for a few months. 

Fueling

I need to get my protein up from 150 grams to 250 grams per day. Collagen is a great protein source and good for protecting joints but I tend to dislike the flavor.  The best solution for me is bone broth.  This is my favorite, especially as the weather gets cooler.  For upping protein, I also have been loving this ground bison, which I stir up with onions and garlic.  Try it (you can even click here for $30 off).  I love both steaks and ground meat.  Which to go for?  Want to bulk or cut weight?  If you want to gain weight: prep food you can eat with a spoon (like my bison/onion/garlic).  If you want to cut weight: prep food that needs a fork and knife like a tomahawk steak.  It takes a bit longer to consume, and that slight inefficiency gives you more time to feel full before you’ve had a chance to overeat. 

Pharma

Every guy should take enclomiphene citrate to optimize hormones, but everyone – guy and gal – should take creatine for muscle growth.  Also, as a side effect creatine outperforms SSRIs in treating major depression.

TL; DR

To be the best version of yourself, rely on discipline and you never have to worry about motivation, 13 hilly miles is too long a warm up for CrossFit, drink bone broth and eat bison, and take creatine every day.