Why Most Entrepreneurs Fail to Get Healthy (And What to Do Instead)

Cam Harris on readiness, small habit swaps and the five pillars that matter more than the workout

TL;DR

• People need to be ready to be coached. Cam finds many clients get there after trying everything else.
• He starts with habits, flipping poor daily routines into better ones that compound over time.
• His five pillars are habits, nutrition, training, sleep and NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis).
• Two quick sleep wins: no caffeine after midday and less alcohol.

Introduction

It's frustrating to put so much time and effort into your workouts and see nothing in return. This short clip from my conversation with Cam Harris, founder of TRUTH Fitness, shows why what you do outside the gym matters so much.

Cam works with busy entrepreneurs and business leaders. I asked him how he reins in driven people who want to do everything their own way and change everything at once.

Lesson 1: You have to be ready to change

Insight: Cam said it's difficult, and the most important part is that the person is ready. If you're 50, running a business and looking after a family, the chances of fixing every health problem on your own, with all the research and trial and error that takes, are pretty slim.

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink. When someone's at the top of the tree in their world, they may wonder why they should listen to anyone else. In Cam's experience, people usually become receptive once they've tried everything else, like PT, crash diets and fat freezing, and none of it has worked.

Action: Be honest with yourself: are you ready to be coached, or are you still trying to do it all your own way?

Outcome: You stop wasting time on approaches you won't stick with.

Lesson 2: Start with habits

Insight: Cam starts every client with habits, because the things you do two, three, four or five times a day have the biggest impact. He builds each person a customised habit list.

His example was a CEO who wakes at 5 am, catches an early train, grabs a croissant and a big latte with sugar, then takes a cab to the office. You don't need to change the early start or the train. Swap the latte and croissant for a double espresso and sparkling water, and walk the short distance instead of taking a cab. Like investing, small changes compound over time. Clients get 16 weeks of runway as standard.

Another common habit is simply eating protein with every meal. Cam said many of his London clients eat cereal, croissants, sandwiches and crisps, with very little protein.

Action: Write down your typical morning. Pick one part you can flip into a better habit without changing your schedule.

Outcome: You make progress without overhauling your whole life.

Lesson 3: The five pillars

Insight: After habits, Cam works through the rest of his five pillars:

• Nutrition: a simple framework with nutrient-dense foods, more protein, good fats and more green veg. Clients send photos of every meal for feedback.
• Training: many people think they train properly, but their form, weights, intensity or tempo are off.
• Sleep: one of the biggest pillars. Many clients are highly caffeinated, drink regularly at networking events and client lunches, and have no structure around sleep.
• NEAT: non-exercise activity thermogenesis, or movement outside the gym, like walking instead of taking a taxi or walking during an internal meeting.

He says clients who follow the five pillars often start seeing changes within the first fortnight. That's a lot more than "eat less, move more".

Action: Rate yourself out of 10 on each pillar. Start with your lowest score.

Outcome: You focus your effort where it'll make the biggest difference.

Lesson 4: Simple sleep fixes

Insight: Cam's two quick wins for sleep are cutting caffeine by midday and reducing alcohol. He's lost count of how many people think red wine helps them sleep. He calls it an old wives' tale.

His other suggestions are:

• no drinks in the hour before bed, so you're not up to the toilet overnight
• some reading and lower lighting before bed
• no phones or iPads in bed, because answering emails at 9 pm keeps your brain firing.

Action: Tonight, put your phone outside the bedroom and read for 10 minutes instead.

Outcome: You give yourself a better chance of a good night's sleep.

Quick wins

• Have your last coffee before midday.
• Add protein to every meal.
• Walk short trips instead of driving or taking a cab.
• Take one internal call on a walk.
• Keep screens out of bed.

Closing insight

The truth about fitness is that it's mostly everything other than the workout. You're already eating, sleeping and moving, so optimise those things and you'll start seeing results. Then the workouts become something extra you add in, and you'll have more energy to get the most from them.

Listen to the full episode

The full conversation is on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube, or press play at the top of this page.

Related episodes: Health, Habits and High Performance with Cam Harris and What I Learned From 5 Powerful Podcast Guests