“I have no time to exercise” isn’t an excuse.

It’s a lie.

It’s a lie in many ways.

It’s a lie that many have come to believe to be true.

But believing a lie doesn’t make it the truth. While believing a lie might seem harmless, this one will harm you in more ways than you can imagine, affecting everyone around you as well.

In this newsletter, I explain what I call the paradox of health and time. If you value your health and time, you must understand this concept.

Let’s find out what it means.

The Paradox of Health and Time

People use the "I have no time" lie to justify their neglect of exercise.

What they’re actually saying is:

I’m not taking care of myself.

I’m not taking responsibility for the needs of my body.

I’m not doing anything in my power to maintain proper health.

Doesn’t sound pretty, right?

“I don’t have time to exercise” tells me one thing: you value time.

You don’t just spend it on anything and everything. No, you spend it only on the most urgent things. And all those things are more important than your health.

Doesn’t make any sense to me.

How can someone value their time but not their health?

Because time and health are linked.

Let me clarify:

When in good health, you have time. When you lose your health, you lose time. To have time, you need health. To maintain health, you need time.

I call this phenomenon The Paradox of Health and Time.

You only have time as long as you have health. When you lose your health, you lose the time you have on this planet.

Without your health, you can’t:

• Work
• Care
• Teach
• Provide

Without your health, you can’t do anything.

To maintain good HEALTH, your body needs exercise.

You need to take care of your body — one way or another.

That, dear reader, takes TIME.

Do you see the connection?

Time

This quote hits the nail on the head:

“Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it you can never get it back.” ― Harvey MacKay

It’s 100% true, but…

I would add:

You can greatly reduce the time you have.

You can greatly increase the time you have.

It all depends on where you spend your time.

• Going to the gym or lying on the couch?
• A stressful job or a fulfilling one?
• Food prep or ordering fast-food?
• Alcohol to relax or yoga?

How you spend your time affects your time.

It affects:

• The absolute amount
• The quality of your time

Better health → longer life = more time.

Better health → higher output = high quality time.

Weaker health → shorter life = less time.

Weaker health → lower output = low quality time.

In other words:

‘Save’ time by neglecting health → less and lower quality time.

Invest time in your health → more and higher quality time.

Here’s a harsh reality:

Save your precious time by neglecting your health now. Pay with your priceless time when losing your health later.

You can use your time only once.

You can invest and gain time.

You can waste and lose time.

What’s it going to be?

Health

“Health is a matter of choice, not a mystery of chance.” — Aristotle.

Many take their health for granted.

They act as if health is something they just deserve.

They act as if nothing can ever happen to them.

They act as if health is simply given.

It’s nothing more than a lie many have come to believe.

Eat crap and get fat → Pay with your health.

Indulge in alcohol every week → Pay with your health.

Skip exercise and stay out of shape → Pay with your health.

Whether you like it or not, this is the truth.

Health isn’t given, it’s actively created.

Do you want to be in great health?

• Exercise.
• Eat nutritious food.
• Do strength training.
• Do endurance training.
• Manage your stress levels.
• Create strong and healthy relationships.

In other words, do anything in your power to nurture body and mind.

If time is what you’re concerned about, maintain proper health.

If health is what you’re concerned about, invest time to optimize it.

And if neither time nor health is your concern?

Just stop lying about it.

Just say you don’t care.

Eventually, it’s your life. Your choice.

But never forget that choices have consequences.

If you don’t like the consequences, reconsider your choices.