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Welcome to 1-3-1 Fridays, my weekly newsletter, where I reveal evidence-based strategies to get lean, strong, and create optimal health.

You'll receive:

• 1 reflection from me
• 3 ideas you can use
• 1 question for you

Let's dive in.

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What's new this week:

• ​Ep 34: A psychologist's approach to stop self-sabotage | Dr. Angela Crawford (Podcast)
• ​Why discipline won't stop your self-sabotage​ (YouTube)

At the end of August, we're running our next small private 30-day fitness challenge.

I'm calling it the 'Health Reset'.

30 days. $27. 10 spots. Application only.

If you want to drop 4-6 pounds or build your next 2-3 lbs of muscle in less than 30 days, even as a high-achieving parent, this is for you.

Less is more when you're doing the right things.

It's a great opportunity to reset your health without wasting time on fluff.

Enrollment isn't open yet for the challenge, but we'll offer early enrollment with extra bonuses and a full health stack to give you the best ROI in minimal time.

Early bird enrollment opens next Friday on August 7th.

There's some cool extra bonuses if you apply and are accepted for the first 6 spots.

Full details out next week.

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ONE REFLECTION FROM ME

I feel like a foot doctor.

The past few weeks, I've learned more about the human foot than I did before.

I recently found a bump under my left foot arch.

Turns out it's a plantar fibroma.

Completely harmless.

It's a lump of tissue. It forms from stress in the calf and nearby muscles. This stress eventually affects the foot fascia.

So the root cause?

I haven't been stretching or foam rolling regularly. In fact, I haven't done either at all.

Running 12+ miles a week with 2+ hour-long soccer matches 2x a week finally caught up to my legs.

So now it's time to recover and stop repeating the same mistake.

It's kinda similar to how we make the same mistakes in our health and fitness over and over again.

If you don't go to the root cause, no amount of icing, anti-inflammatories, or grounding can ultimately solve your problem.

You'll only keep addressing the symptoms, not the root cause.

Getting clear on what was causing my discomfort was the first step.

The second step is not to keep repeating the same mistake.

The third is to take preventative measures to avoid repeating the same mistake again.

Step 1: Clarify root cause

Step 2: Stop aggravating the problem by repeating the mistake

Step 3: Take preventative measures to avoid the same mistake in the future

Use this 3-step process to solve your health & fitness problems moving forward.

Let me know how it goes if you try this out.

Lesson: Health is simple...when you're focused on the right things.

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3 IDEAS FOR YOU

I.

Omegas are important.

Here's what you need to know about omega-3 and omega-6:

• Omega-3 and -6 are called essential fatty acids (EFAs) because the body can't make them. You must get them from food.
• Linoleic acid (LA) is the parent of omega-6, while alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is the parent of omega-3. Both are key to a healthy nervous system. They help form cell membranes, produce energy, and create hormones.

It's easy to get omega-6 on a whole-food, plant-based diet. There are many plant sources of linoleic acid.

You can find it in nuts, seeds like sunflower, hemp, pumpkin, and sesame, as well as in soybeans, corn, and various oils.

When it comes to omega-3, there are three main omega-3 fatty acids:

• Alpha-linolenic acid - ALA
• Eicosapentaenoic acid - EPA
• Docosahexaenoic acid - DHA

The best sources of ALA are flaxseeds and flaxseed oil.

You can also find smaller amounts in other seeds, such as chia, hemp, and canola. Walnuts, soybeans, and oils from these foods also contain ALA.

Dark green leafy vegetables and broccoli also contain some ALA.

So to summarize, omegas matter.

But so do the sources.

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II.

When it comes to tracking nutrition, things can get complicated.

Most people track their nutrition inefficiently.

If you want to save more time tracking, here’s what to do:

1. Create a database of 6-8 meals that you eat consistently
2. Save those meals on MyFitnessPal, Cronometer, or your preferred tracking tool (our clients enjoy the ZH App).
3. Once your meals are saved as templates inside of your tracker, commit to using similar meals each time you eat (if you’re cutting body fat or building muscle, having a systemized plan for your meals will dramatically reduce your tracking time)
4. Each time you track, use the meals you’ve saved as templates and adjust the grams per ingredient (if needed). For example, if your meal template is lentil tofu stew, but on Monday, you added more tofu, adjust the grams for the extra tofu for that particular meal.
5. Bonus step: If you use Cronometer (which I recommend or our ZH App, which tracks meals as well, you also have the option to set up your meals as recurring. This is a game-changer since your meals can already be saved to your next day as recurring indefinitely. This means you only need to go in and tweak any grams per meal (if needed).

You’ve saved over 50% of time tracking your meals.

Reinvest that saved time in your quality of life, workouts, or time with family.

You might even get some extra sleep.

Not too shabby.

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III.

Be curious.

Like any good scientist, you'll want to use proven principles that have worked for large groups of humans.

But at the same time, don’t take everything at face value. Test things for yourself.

Try it out not just once, but for an extended period.

Working out and lifting weights won’t change your body overnight. But if you stick with it for 4-6 months, or longer, you’ll notice amazing changes in your body. This is especially true when you focus on energy balance.

So less is more when you’re doing the right things.

But you still have to do the right things long enough; otherwise, you won’t be able to make a scientific decision or analysis based on it.

Jumping from one fitness trend to another doesn’t work. Unlike what you see on Facebook and Instagram, abs aren’t built in just 4 weeks. You can’t sustainably lose 20 pounds in 6 weeks or gain 10 pounds of muscle in a month.

You can, however, achieve the results you want over an extended period by using the right approach.

Study yourself.

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ONE QUESTION FOR YOU

What's one thing you'd like to START doing in your health?

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Client Spotlight

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1 QUOTE FROM OTHERS

I.

“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”​
― Viktor E. Frankl

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Not sure if July or August is hotter.

Either way, I'm drinking so much watermelon juice these days.

Probably my favorite drink of 2026.

As promised, your 1-3-1 Friday in less than 5 minutes.

Until next week,

P.S. If you ever want to go down the rabbithole...