Get Active for Life: Issue #6

Progress you can actually see

August 26, 2025

In this issue:

  • Tracking your Progress

  • Paul’s Story

  • The 1% rule

  • and more…

Hello there,

Tracking Your Progress (Without Making It a Chore)

When it comes to getting active, there’s one simple trick that can make a big difference: track what you’re doing.

Don’t worry - this doesn’t mean you need spreadsheets, fancy gadgets, or writing a novel about your daily walk. In fact, the simpler the better. A notebook, a tick on a calendar, or tapping “done” in an app all count. The point is: when you track, you notice. And noticing is what turns small actions into sustainable habits.

Why track?

  • Motivation boost: Watching those ticks, steps, or streaks add up gives you a little dopamine kick. Research shows that seeing progress keeps people more consistent.

  • Reality check: We often think we’re more (or less) active than we really are. Tracking helps you get honest with yourself.

  • Celebrating wins: Even if it’s just “I walked 10 minutes today,” it’s still progress worth recognising.

How to start

  • Keep it ridiculously easy. One line in a notebook, or one tap in an app.

  • Focus on consistency, not perfection. Miss a day? No problem - just start again tomorrow.

  • Track the misses too. Note when you planned to be active but didn’t - and why. Not for blame or shame, but because those notes reveal patterns between intention and execution. Maybe mornings are too rushed, or certain days always slip. This is valuable data that helps you plan better next time.

  • Add a dash of fun. Use stickers, emojis, or even a silly reward system (“3 walks = guilt-free extra episode of my favourite show”).

Tracking isn’t about being perfect - it’s about creating a feedback loop that keeps you nudging forward. Over time, those little records (yes, even the gaps) become a surprisingly powerful reminder of just how far you’ve come.

So this week, why not try it? Pick a method that feels easy, and start tracking your activity. Future you will thank you (and may even laugh at how motivating a row of little ticks can be).

P.S. We’re building Twikka to make tracking even simpler - no spreadsheets, no guilt, just easy ways to see your progress (and patterns). Keep an eye out - it’s coming soon!

🕺 Interesting People

Meet Paul

Exercise is the “nucleus” to Paul’s life

From Low Confidence to Full Self-Belief: How Boxing Changed Everything

Paul's transformation story proves that exercise isn't just about physical fitness. Starting as a young person struggling with weight issues from Italian family eating patterns and battling "pretty bad anxiety," Paul discovered that boxing and martial arts could rebuild him from the inside out.

In this honest conversation, Paul shares:

  • How following his older brother and cousins led to his fitness journey

  • The weight struggles that came from European family eating patterns

  • Why discovering martial arts at 17 became his turning point

  • How boxing became his most powerful tool against anxiety

  • The evolution from wanting to "get big" to focusing on wellbeing

  • Why exercise is now "the nucleus" of his entire life

  • Practical advice for pushing through negative self-talk

Key Quote: "Starting off as a younger person, relatively low in confidence. Now being a middle-aged man who's the complete opposite, you've got full belief in yourself. It all stemmed from training really, and exercise."

This isn't about perfect technique or extreme workouts. It's about finding an activity that builds your confidence, manages your mental health, and becomes the foundation for everything else in your life.

What's holding you back from starting?

You can watch our interview with Paul here.

📝 Health & Wellness News

What we’ve been reading this week

🚶‍♀️ Japanese Walking: The 3-Minute Trick That's Taking Over TikTok

This interval walking technique alternates between 3 minutes of brisk walking and 3 minutes of moderate pace, and the science backs up the hype. Japanese researchers found that people who followed this pattern for 5 months saw greater improvements in leg strength, blood pressure, and overall fitness compared to steady-pace walkers. Plus, it's way less boring than regular walking!

Sources: TIME | Science Direct

🌿 5 Science-Backed Ways Ginger Boosts Your Health

From easing nausea to reducing inflammation, this humble kitchen spice packs a powerful health punch. Recent research shows ginger can help with everything from menstrual pain to heart health, with studies finding it rivals ibuprofen for pain relief and may even support brain health. The best part? You can get these benefits simply by adding fresh ginger to your tea or cooking.

Source: ScienceAlert

⏰ Morning Exercise Gives You Better Results Than Afternoon Workouts

A 2025 study found that exercising before 1 PM offers more benefits for lung health, heart function, and walking efficiency compared to later workouts. Morning exercisers showed better cardiovascular fitness and improved physical performance. If you're struggling to find motivation, this might be the perfect reason to become an early bird.

🧬 Highly Sensitive People More Prone to Mental Health Issues

A major analysis of 33 studies found that people with high sensitivity are more likely to experience depression and anxiety, but they're also more responsive to positive experiences and treatments. Understanding your sensitivity level could help you choose better coping strategies and create environments that support your mental wellbeing.

🎓 Just 9 Minutes of Exercise Boosts Kids' Academic Performance

University of North Carolina researchers discovered that brief exercise sessions can immediately improve children's focus and learning ability. Even short bursts of physical activity enhanced cognitive performance, proving that movement isn't just good for the body – it's essential for the brain too.

Sources: UNCG Research

🤖 AI Health Coach Matches (and Sometimes Beats) the Experts

A new study in Nature Medicine shows that artificial intelligence can analyse wearable data like steps, sleep, and heart rate to give personalised health advice. In tests, the AI scored slightly higher than human experts on sleep medicine (79% vs 76%) and fitness certification exams (88% vs 71%). It also provided expert-level guidance in hundreds of real-world case studies, and could even predict how well people said they slept based on sensor data. This could make high-quality health coaching more accessible to everyone.

👍 Actionable Tip of the Week

One Percent at a time!

The 1% Better Rule

Forget dramatic fitness overhauls – focus on being just 1% better each day.

If you walked 2,000 steps yesterday, aim for 2,020 today. If you did 5 push-ups, try for 6 tomorrow. These tiny improvements feel manageable and build momentum without overwhelming your willpower or schedule.

The 1% rule works because it's based on the compound effect – small, consistent improvements add up to remarkable changes over time. After just one year of 1% daily improvements, you'll be 37 times better than when you started.

It's not about perfection; it's about progress that actually sticks.

Start now: Choose one aspect of your health (steps, water intake, or sleep time) and commit to improving it by just 1% today.

❝

What gets measured gets improved.

Peter Drucker

😊 Fun, Quirky, Interesting

The other side of Health and Life

🧠 Your Brain Burns 20% of Your Daily Calories Just by Thinking

Despite being only 2% of your body weight, your brain consumes a whopping 20% of your daily energy. That mental workout you get from solving puzzles, learning new skills, or even just daydreaming is literally burning calories. So technically, binge-watching a complex TV series counts as exercise for your brain!

🐕 Dogs Can Detect Your Mood Changes Before You Even Know Them

Research shows that dogs can smell the chemical changes in your body that occur before you're consciously aware of mood shifts. They're basically furry emotional early warning systems, detecting stress, sadness, or excitement through scent alone. Your dog might know you're having a bad day before you do!

Link: Time

🐨 Koalas Have Fingerprints Almost Identical to Humans

Koala fingerprints are so similar to human ones that they've actually confused crime scene investigators in Australia. These marsupials evolved fingerprints completely independently from humans, yet they're nearly indistinguishable. It's one of evolution's most adorable coincidences!

Link: PBS Nova

🐧 Male Penguins Propose with the Perfect Pebble

When a male penguin falls in love, he searches the entire beach to find the smoothest, most perfect pebble to present to his chosen female as a proposal. If she accepts his pebble, they mate for life. It's basically nature's version of shopping for the perfect engagement ring, except it's absolutely adorable and involves waddling!

Thanks for reading!

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Disclaimer: The content of this newsletter does not constitute medical advice. You should always take the advice of a qualified health professional as required.