3 Ways To Optimize Recovery & Avoid Burnout

Let’s be real: building a business is hard as hell. And if you’re a high achiever, chances are you’re grinding around the clock, squeezing in workouts when you can, and hoping the hustle pays off. But here’s the kicker—if you don’t take care of yourself properly, you’re playing a losing game. Overwork without recovery leads straight to burnout. You need a system for fitness and recovery, not just another to-do list.

In this article, I’ll walk you through three game-changing strategies to fuel your performance, sharpen your mind, and turn you into a physical powerhouse. These are the very tools I used to go from burnout in my finance days to becoming stronger, faster, and more resilient than ever. Let’s dive in.

1. Optimize Your Sleep or Pay the Price

You can’t outrun bad sleep, my friend. If you’re busting your ass in the gym and grinding through business deals, but your sleep is trash, you’re setting yourself up to fail. Poor sleep creeps in slowly, and before you know it, burnout slaps you across the face.

Here are three essentials to dial in your sleep right now:

1. Cut water intake by 7-8 PM – If you're 35+, you know the struggle of middle-of-the-night pee breaks. Shut it down early to get uninterrupted sleep.
2. Implement a 90-minute screen curfew – Ditch the phone, laptop, and TV before bed. Tech overstimulates the brain, blocking quality rest. Get an old-school alarm clock and keep your phone out of the bedroom.
3. Sleep between 10 PM and 2 AM – Your body’s prime recovery window is here. Miss this, and you're leaving gains on the table.

Bonus tip: Stop making excuses about screen-free time. Use that window to stretch, read a book, or spend quality time with loved ones. No Netflix binge will ever improve your life or recovery.

2. Fuel Your Body—It’s Non-Negotiable

Entrepreneurs often treat nutrition like an afterthought. Skipping meals, eating on the go, or downing energy bars won’t cut it if you want to feel sharp and perform like a beast. The solution? Consistency and strategy.

Here’s the breakdown:

• Structure your meals: Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner—then no food before bed. Regular eating stabilizes blood sugar and keeps your energy up throughout the day.
• Calculate your calories: Use a calorie calculator to hit your goals. If you’re bulking, aim for 20% more than your maintenance calories. If you’re leaning out, start with a 20% deficit. Use an app like My Fitness Pal to help you with these numbers. Keep it simple, there is no hack.
• Simplify your macros:

Plug all of this Data into My Fitness Pal and have it track the numbers. Tracking your food for a few months is time consuming I know, but so important for you to actually understand the quality and quantity of what you are eating.?

Pro tip: Most of you are undereating the good stuff, and overeating the sh*t. Invest in tools like meal-prep services or a six-pack fitness bag. Keep your meals ready to avoid slipping into fast food traps. No excuses—either prep your food or pay someone to do it.

3. Master Recovery with Contrasting Showers

Cold plunges are trendy, but overdoing them will burn you out further by hammering your nervous system. Instead, I recommend contrasting showers, a powerful and easy recovery method that balances hot and cold exposure.

Here’s how it works:

1. 60 seconds cold, 30 seconds hot.
2. Repeat for three rounds.

This process triggers vasoconstriction (cold) and vasodilation (hot), helping flush out toxins and increase recovery. You’ll step out of the shower feeling focused but calm—not lit right up like after an ice bath. It’s simple, effective, and you can do it at home or on the road.

Pro tip: Cold contrasting (without warmth), working out, running, hiking, moving and grooving are all stress in the body. When you have a very busy schedule and lots of stress from building your business you NEED to balance that out. That means do things that support “rest and digest” and don't pile on more fight or flight. I know it’s tempting, but RESIST. Sometimes a day off is much better for your performance than hitting another workout… Remember that.

Wrap Up: Train Smart, Recover Smarter

The difference between the average man and the elite man is not just effort—it’s strategy. The average man trains hard, skips meals, jacks himself up on caffeine, and burns out. The elite man? He sleeps well, eats intentionally, and leverages tools like contrasting showers, meditation and calming breathwork to enhance recovery and keep performing at his peak.

If you want to dominate in business and the gym, start with these foundations. Sleep better, eat smarter, and recover intentionally. This isn’t about grinding harder—it’s about performing smarter. You owe it to yourself, your business, and those counting on you.

Now, it’s on you. Get strategic. Make the changes. Build recovery into your week the same way you build your business strategy. Your future self will thank you.

If you found this valuable, share it with other entrepreneurs who need to hear it. And don’t forget—average is easy. Elite takes work.