If you don’t track it, you can’t measure it.
This rule applies to both your health and wealth.
Regarding the former, maintaining muscle mass is the holy grail of cellular and metabolic health.
Muscle is your path to real wealth.
1. Muscle tissue is metabolically active and burns calories at rest. The more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate, which aids weight control and blood sugar regulation and reduces the risk of metabolic diseases like type 2 diabetes.
2. Muscles protect joints, support posture, and enhance mobility. A muscle mask reduces the risk of falls and injuries. Sarcopenia (the loss of muscle mass) is a leading cause of frailty in older people.
3. Higher muscle mass correlates with increased lifespan and, more importantly, enhanced healthspan. Muscles slow down aging and fight chronic disease.
Unfortunately, getting a doctor’s prescription for a resistance training program tailored to your needs is difficult. You won’t see this miracle drug amongst the plethora of prescription pills bombarding your TV day and night.
It’s great to go outside for a walk and play Pickleball. These activities are terrific for your mental and heart health. The problem is they don’t build muscle, the resource EVERYONE desperately needs as they age.
It is essential to prioritize at least two to three resistance training sessions weekly. Weights, bands, or body weight exercises like pushups and air squats work well.
Eating enough quality protein is vital for maintaining and increasing muscle mass. Top trainers recommend 1 gram of protein for each pound of ideal body weight to optimize results.
These tips are a start, but how can you track your progress?
Here are a couple of suggestions. I use a food tracking app called Carbon. It’s a great way to set goals and ensure you get enough protein while not overeating, according to your ideal calorie intake. It takes a few minutes a day and is user-friendly.
Tracking muscle mass is trickier. The most accurate way to track body fat and muscle mass levels is to get a DEXA scan. It costs a couple of hundred dollars but provides invaluable data.
You can also do this at home with specially outfitted scales. I use the Oxiline Scale MD Pro.
I weigh myself every Monday and view the results, which allow me to track my diet and workouts to optimize muscle gain and fat loss.
The App provides a printable report detailing your measurements.
Taking time to monitor these vitals is health alpha. Unfortunately, most people spend valuable bandwidth chasing the wrong data points.
The same goes for your financial wealth. Monitoring your portfolio daily and keeping watch of your neighbor’s net worth are colossal wastes of energy.
What are some metrics you should be monitoring with precision?
Here are three items to focus on.
- Savings Rate: Your savings rate is the prime driver of wealth—a 20% rate compounds at a fantastic rate over time. Track your income and expenses along with your monthly savings. Do your best to automate bank, brokerage, and retirement account contributions.
- Investment Return: (Net of Costs and Taxes): Gross returns don’t build wealth. High fees and tax drag consume compounding power. Focus on low-cost index funds while being mindful of diversification and asset allocation regarding taxes. For example, put REIT funds in retirement accounts to deal with the taxes on these high-interest investments.
- Net Worth: Similiar to an annual physical, it makes sense to track this data yearly. Subtract your total assets from your liabilities. The trend is your friend. This number should be growing over time. If it’s not, don’t fret. Your tracking is working, and adjusting the current trajectory is imperative.
Learn how to track what matters about your health and wealth.
There are no substitutes for measuring what’s important and avoiding what’s not.
