The last six months have been some of the hardest I’ve gone through in years.
Days that start at 7 am and stretch until midnight. Weekends are disappearing into work. The constant tension of trying to keep businesses alive and moving forward while still being present for my family and two kids.
I’m not new to this; I’ve been building and running businesses for 16 years, but every time I go through an intense launch phase, it reminds me how much it costs. Bootstrapping means we don’t have a boss, but it also means there’s no safety net. The pressure doesn’t go away.
And here’s what I’ve learned: it’s not ideas, or markets, or strategies that keep you going when the grind is real. It’s something much more basic.
Fitness and nutrition.
A year ago, I wasn’t fit at all. I was heavily overweight, constantly exhausted, and often drifting into procrastination just because my body couldn’t keep up with what my mind demanded.
Since then, I’ve lost 20kg. I started running almost every day — nothing crazy fast, but consistent, five to eight kilometers at a time, six days a week. I improved my diet, focused on protein, supplements that work for me, and avoided the endless sugar spikes and “Fressattacken” (binge eating) that stress used to trigger.
The effect has been transformative.
Not just physically, but mentally. Running resets my brain. It cuts through the noise of meetings, messages, and stress, and br
ings me back to focus on the signal, the things that actually matter. Good nutrition helps me recover, stay sharp, and not burn out halfway through the day.
Founders love to talk about discipline and consistency. But discipline isn’t about posting every day or working late every night. It’s about sustaining your purpose over years, not weeks. It’s about keeping yourself alive, strong, and clear-headed enough to make the journey possible.
That’s why I believe sustaining as a founder is less about output and more about building the baseline habits that allow you to keep going — through exhaustion, through pressure, through the unknown length of the road ahead.
In today’s Builder’s Diary vlog, I share more of my personal journey — the struggles, the fitness routine, the lessons that help me keep moving even when the days feel impossible.
And one small note: I’ve recently started using Bearly Fit by @James Mahy. It’s a simple, thoughtful app built with love, and it helps me stay on track with the habits that matter most.
If you’re building something of your own, whether it’s a company, a project, or a personal mission, I hope this reminds you:
You don’t need more hacks. You need to sustain yourself.
—Adrian
