The Rob Arthur Podcast

You can set goals all day long.

Without the work, they're useless.

Identify the habits and behaviors that move you toward the goal.

Commit to those habits and behaviors.

It's that commitment that will move you forward.

Goals are only as good as the commitments behind them.

This might take some tough self-love.

An honest look in the mirror.

Asking yourself some tough questions.

What are your goals, really?

How much do they matter to you?

Which goals are or are not serving you?

What steps are you taking to make them happen?

How effective have those steps actually been?

What new steps might you need to start taking?

What old steps might you need to let go?

What steps might just need a bit of tweaking?

You might not like the answers to such questions.

They might require some humility.

Some self-compassion.

Perhaps even some discomfort.

That’s okay.

Answer them openly and honestly, without judgement.

Determine where you are.

Identify where you want to go.

Take action to close the gap between the two.

If the goal is worthy, you’ll find a way.

That way will call for commitment.

You’ve got this.

Eating red meat, such as beef and lamb, has been linked to cancer, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and all-cause mortality, and its production has been identified as contributing to climate change (1).

But is there more to the story?

Let’s first look at the health claims.

For starters, red meat is a good source of high quality protein, selenium, niacin, vitamin B12, iron, and zinc (2), as well as taurine, carnosine, anserine, and creatine, four nutrients not found in plants (3).

So far as disease risk is concerned, in 2019 a group of researchers conducted a series of systematic reviews, concluded that the evidence for red meat causing adverse health outcomes is weak, and recommended that adults continue to eat red meat (4).

This was a bit controversial, with calls for the reviews to be retracted, but these calls were suspected to be influenced by corporate interests who might benefit from reduced meat consumption (5).

What about red meat and climate change?

Industrial farming may contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, but if we shift our efforts toward more sustainable practices like regenerative grazing, livestock can actually help reverse climate change by sequestering carbon back into soil (6).

That being said, you might also be concerned about killing sentient beings.

However, crop agriculture kills large numbers of small mammals, snakes, lizards and other animals, and a diet that includes meat may result in less sentient death than a diet based entirely on plants (7).

Of course, you don’t have to eat red meat if you don’t want to.

You might not have access to an affordable, sustainable, ethical source.

You might not be convinced by the points offered above.

You might simply not like red meat.

That’s all totally cool.

You could go the rest of your life without any red meat and be just fine.

If you do want to eat red meat, though, you can probably do so without harm to yourself, the environment, or your conscience.

Make the best decision for you, based on your values, needs, preferences, and goals.

Only you can do that.

You do you.

You’ve got this.

We’re often told to listen to our bodies.

To eat or train intuitively.

To implement our health and fitness efforts based on how we feel.

Yet, there’s much value in having a plan.

Clear structure for moving toward our goals.

This is particularly true when just getting started.

When we haven’t yet learned what works best for us.

Unable to decipher conflicting thoughts, feelings, and sensations.

Lacking clarity and confidence in times of ambivalence or uncertainty.

Can you tell true hunger from cravings?

Physical fatigue from emotional resistance?

Stress-fueled endorphins from restful energy?

If not, turning to undeveloped intuition might do more harm than good.

Earn the right to listen to your body.

Establish a mindfulness practice.

Tune into your body regularly.

Learn to recognize your thoughts and feelings.

What you’re feeling, where, and why.

What’s driving your needs and desires.

When your intuition has served you.

When it’s led you astray.

Have some self-compassion.

This will be a process.

It will take practice and patience.

If necessary, return to structure.

There’s no shame in seeking help.

Walk your path at your pace.

Intuitively, structured, or otherwise.

You’ve got this.

Some of us know our flaws all too well.

We incessantly ruminate over our mistakes.

We relive our failures, over and over again.

We are our own harshest critics.

Constantly putting ourselves down.

Speaking to and thinking of ourselves in ways we’d never speak to or think of others.

Not realizing that such patterns aren’t serving us.

Not understanding that they’re holding us back.

Not seeing that we don’t have to live this way.

You could ruminate over your mistakes.

Hold on to deep-seated feelings of failure.

Repeat patterns of harsh self-criticism.

Or you could recognize that you're imperfect.

That you always have been and always will be.

But that you can be better.

Stop beating yourself up.

It’s okay to want more from yourself.

To not like who you are.

To yearn for change.

Pursue that change from a place of self-love.

From self-compassion.

From self-worth.

Understanding that you are more than your past.

More than your mistakes.

More than your failures.

Lift yourself up.

Push yourself.

Love yourself.

You’ve got this.

We can get so caught up in doing the work.

Pouring all of our time and energy into the gym, office, studio, or lab.

This attitude might lead to plenty of progress.

Yet, it often leads to overlooking the benefit of downtime.

The opportunity presented by stepping away from our efforts.

The value of rest.

When do you assess your progress and adjust your strategy?

When do you reflect, recover, and recharge to come back stronger?

When do you simply enjoy the outcomes of your efforts?

It's not during the work.

It's during the rest.

The rest is just as important as the work.

Of course, you might find great joy in the work.

It might bring you great satisfaction.

Fill your cup.

Yet, there’s still value in time away.

To let absence foster appreciation.

To remind you why you do what you do.

To create space to make sure you’re living your best life.

Balancing rest and work isn’t always straightforward.

It might take some experimentation.

Finding your “sweet spot” will take time.

It will take effort.

It is a process.

Find your ideal balance.

Only you can determine what that looks like for you.

Based on your needs, preferences, and goals.

You are worthy.

You’ve got this.

Many of us dedicate much effort to managing our finances.

We keep a budget.

Make investments.

Give to worthy causes.

Track what comes in.

Control what goes out.

Taking great care to allocate our resources to their highest uses.

Yet, in doing so, we often overlook more important resources.

Resources that cannot be stolen, lost, or accumulated.

That cannot be printed, mined, or earned.

That are always being used.

Always being spent.

Our time, energy, and attention.

Are they not worthy, too, of account?

Worthy of infinitely more care than material wealth?

You only have so much time, energy, and attention.

Are you managing them with due diligence?

How much do you squander, hoard, or apply to distraction and vice?

How much do you invest, give to others, or apply to bettering yourself?

Money is not the only resource to manage.

It’s often only a representation of these intangible, invaluable resources.

Resources that come from within, are finite, and fleeting.

It’s on each of us to determine how to spend them.

How to put toward the most worthy pursuits.

You alone can determine how to use your own.

Based on your values.

Your priorities.

Your goals and dreams.

You’ve got this.

Progress doesn’t always come linearly.

There are days when we crush it in the gym.

There are days when we drag through our training.

There are days when our diets are on point.

There are days when we eat things that make us feel like crap.

There are days when we excel on the job.

There are days when we’re just trying to make it to 5 o’clock.

It’s hard to stay driven on those sub-par days.

When we don’t feel like we’re making progress.

All we can do is take the next step.

You might take a big step.

You might take a small step.

You might step in the right direction.

You might step in the wrong direction.

Keep stepping.

Make adjustments as necessary.

Persist in your pursuit of your best life.

Every step is progress.

Even those that don’t seem to be.

At the very least, you can learn, grow, and improve from the steps that aren’t so fruitful.

You might even completely pivot your efforts.

Of course, we want to reach our goals sooner rather than later.

To take big steps, in the right direction, consistently.

That might happen.

It might not.

Take whatever step you can, big or small, right or wrong, one at a time.

Keep showing up.

Day in and day out.

You’ve got this.

Some of us love being alone.

We make time to be by ourselves.

To rest, recharge, and realign.

Others of us hate it.

We avoid it at all costs.

Any time not spent with others frightens us.

Leaves us feeling empty, isolated, or uncomfortable.

There’s much to be said for cultivating a strong sense of community and belonging.

Yet, some of us do so at the expense of the rewards of being alone.

Being alone might not be exciting.

But it is an opportunity.

To explore our thoughts and feelings.

To see and get to know ourselves.

Often, that's why we don't like being alone.

We don't like ourselves.

If you don't like being alone, consider the company.

Work on yourself.

Learn to identify the things about yourself you like.

Work on those things that you don’t.

Find out who you are.

Determine who you want to be.

Do what you can to close the gap between the two.

Seek validation from within, not without.

Pursue comfort in your own skin.

Embrace who you are.

With all your flaws.

All your imperfections.

You are enough.

You’ve got this.

We’ve all got different ideas and opinions.

Often, these ideas and opinions clash.

We find that others might not agree with us.

That what we see is not what they see.

We then seek to show them what we feel to be true.

It’s tempting to do so from a place of superiority and pride.

To shame or humiliate those whose perspectives we see as inferior.

To show them just how flawed they and their ideas are.

Resorting to hostility.

Yet, does such hostility ever result in any productive outcome?

You're going to encounter disagreement.

You might even "know" you're right.

They're not thinking clearly.

They're misinformed.

They're illogical.

That may all be true.

Can you make your point without hostility?

If not, you might reconsider just how "right" you really are.

If you’re so confident, show it.

Challenge yourself to turn to facts rather than emotion.

To pursue common understanding rather than victory.

To offer reason rather than reaction.

To teach rather than humiliate.

The purpose of debate is not to win.

The purpose is to arrive at the truth.

Set the standard for discourse.

Facilitate worthy discussion.

Be the example.

You’ve got this.

We chase strength in a variety of ways.

We hit the weights regularly.

Seek social status and robust relationships.

Earn, accumulate, and invest material wealth.

Under the impression that we’ll feel like we’ll have a leg up.

Superior to those who haven’t achieved what we have.

Because we want to feel capable.

We want to feel powerful.

To feel strong.

So often, though, such pursuits leave us feeling no stronger.

What if we’ve got the wrong idea of what truly makes us feel strong?

Not looking for strength where it’s actually found?

You might seek physical strength in the gym.

Financial strength in your investments.

Social strength in your relationships.

Yet, you'd never feel strong enough.

Seeking it in the wrong places.

Strength doesn't come from outside of you.

Strength comes from what's within you.

Managing your thoughts and feelings.

Treating yourself and others with love and compassion.

Doing what you can with your circumstances.

Focusing on being your best self.

Of course, external factors play a role in your quality of life.

But they’re secondary to the internal factors.

That’s where you’ll find your greatest strength.

Within your greatest asset.

Yourself.

You’ve got this.