Six things that have drastically improved my life

Akshay Kumar. Getty

I do not know at exactly which point I decided to get into fitness, but like most people I started to work out rather early, after doing sports during adolescence. The difference is that I took Aristotle’s, oft-repeated words, seriously:

“Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”

Hence I started to work out regularly at about 20 and about 10 years later I was good enough to compete in fitness. Had I not partaken in so many bacchanalia I might have tried that earlier.

Typically, it will take me about 6-12 weeks to hit 5% of body fat. After a cynical cost-benefit analysis I have decided to not take these competitions too seriously. Partly because many, unlike myself, compete with the help from steroids, but the diets have definitely had positive spill-over effects, not just for health and physical aesthetics but for game and general well-being.

When I drop below 10% my confidence will get a significant boost and I do not care if I get rejected. Both the inner and outer game benefit in a positive feedback loop relationship. My worst periods of life have been when I have had more body fat, like 15-20%, whereas my best have been when I am in great shape.

Fitness is not black or white and one can find a more balanced position, but let’s say 8-15% of body fat and a relatively muscular natural bodybuilding physique are definitely beneficial for aspiring males. The ROI is generally high, as I see it, as long as one does not become socially isolated due to gym addiction. Pay attention to what girls do, not what they say (generally). And they do love muscles and a ripped body, which scientists such as David Buss and Cindy Meston have confirmed in their research.

3. Work

One’s workplace can be toxic and it is wise to avoid its many pitfalls. However, to work is indeed something positive for social interaction, routine, and one’s ability to obtain disposable extra income. It might seem as to state the obvious, which it is, but sometimes one has to do that in order to get things straight.

Moreover, if one looks at work in a somewhat larger framework, it includes a whole plethora of different tasks, such as to read and write, as well as those physical occupations that I have had in my teens and as a university student. All of them have been beneficial for my well-being and they have also led to other positive outcomes.

4. Fashion

Danial Deen Isa Kalebic & Jane Attaskulchai Deen. Instagram

Such as to be able to buy clothes. Even with a more minimalist-akin approach, nice pants, shoes, shirts, and jackets will not pop up from nowhere. One needs disposable income.

Fashion has changed my life, and I am not even that much into fashion. The point is that good grooming is what separates people in current times. The guy with an ugly pair of pants will not be respected, especially not by the opposite, very judgmental sex.

A blend of traditional and conventional masculine fashion and some metrosexual elements have been quite beneficial throughout many parts of my life. But only as long as it is attributed by a good physique, confidence and game. Fashion and appearance as isolated factors are not enough.

5. Travel

Alex Rivière-Sieber & Christian SIeber

I am a rooted, not rootless cosmopolitan, who enjoys to partake in what other cultures and locations have to offer. Culture, history, adventures, girls – one thing does not exclude another, even though different trips imply different priorities.

To travel, more or less, can be regarded as a goal in itself, and is one of the major benefits from globalization. I think to travel is something that is valuable throughout most phases of a lifetime, but as a younger person it is most optimal to do it if one already has disposable money, well-defined muscles, a sense of fashion – and game.

Needless to say, traveling comes with both pros and cons, but overall the former outcompetes the latter.

6. Learning game

Many of the things that I have mentioned so far are directly or indirectly related to game. But to be aware of game has been as important as its conventional underlying components, mentioned above.

Like many other I started with Neil Strauss’ book and later some other writers, as well as to observe successful people in my social circles. I have mostly used common sense approaches for normal people.

Anyway, what has made me so appreciative of this element of modern male existence, is that whenever I look back at my life, I come to understand that game is required for action to take place. Even as a 12-year-old I used game when I was brave enough to kiss a girl for the first time. Whenever I have been shy and introvert, I have only had my hand at my disposal. Hence when one steps out of solid game, it is game over, but if one learns it to some significant extent, life will likely improve.

About the Contributor

William Adams

William Adams is a European explorer and straightforward writer. Rooted in the West, he temporarily leaves home for more exotic excursions. Mainly focuses on Western and East Asian history and culture, game, travel, self-improvement, politics and economics.