The Minimalist Minute

Welcome to the weekly dose of brain juice that helps you build better habits, get fit and live longer. If you were sent this email, come and join us here.

If you still haven’t downloaded your copy of the Habits Academy, you can get it here.

In today’s instalment:

• How to force yourself into taking action

• How HIIT may not just be good for the bedroom but cancer as well

#habits

If you’ve relied on “motivation” in the past and failed like most of us, take a look at introducing forcing functions when building new habits. Forcing functions are exactly what they sound like, they force you to act with minimal willpower or thought.

Some examples of forcing functions are:

• If you have trouble getting up in the morning, place your alarm clock or phone on the other side of the room, even better if you put it outside of the bedroom. It forces you to get up.

• Organise your workout to be done with friends. It forces you to show up.

• A simple way to control how much you eat is to use smaller plates and bowls. Kids sizes work well because you clearly know when you’re eating too much.

Remember as Maverick would say, “don’t think, just do.”

#longevity

HIIT can be “hiit or miss” in the fitness community. Pun intended.

But this 20-year study suggests that HIIT training may not only be good for some extra horsepower in the bedroom but it could protect your organs from cancer and potentially prevent it from spreading.

HIIT could reduce the risk of metastatic cancer by 70%.

The study also goes on to suggest that High Intensity Interval Training can:

• Increase your immune system’s ability to eliminate cancer cells

• Make it harder for cancer cells to grow

Training at 80% of your maximum heart is the optimal zone based on the data but even training at lower HR rates and shorter intervals can help impact your risk profile.

#quote

#mystats

Each week I share my stats for my weekly habits to hopefully inspire you to get after your habits and goals. Here’s what this week looked like:

I hope you enjoyed this week’s instalment of the Minimalist Minute.

Got anything you want to know? Hit reply to this email and i’ll include it in the next edition!

Stay frosty,

Brett