ARE YOU MENTALLY FIT?
Men's Health South Africa|July - August 2023
WE KNOW HOW TO TRAIN AND EAT OUR WAY TO PEAK PHYSICAL FITNESS. BUT HOW CAN WE ELEVATE OUR MENTAL GAME? MASTER THESE THREE SKILLS TO GET YOUR MIND IN ITS BEST SHAPE EVER.
MIKE KESSLER, MARTY MUNSON
ARE YOU MENTALLY FIT?

YOU'VE SHATTERED 

your cardio PRs, dragged a rake over your abs and bio hacked every move from sexy time to slumber. But how do you become more mentally fit? How do you become the man you want to be on the inside, too? The guy who can power through a breakup, disappoint a partner or friend without shames-piraling and get what he needs from an infantile coworker without snapping like an angry parent.

That's where mental fitness comes in. The hard-to-grasp, often awkward and sometimes painful work that you can't track with an app. Spending time on a hearty mental-fitness practice can create more long-term benefits for your mind and life than virtually anything else you do. And no, meditation isn't required. We asked dozens of experts who train people to be mentally fit or study mental health for a living what it takes to forge mental fitness, and they all came back to three things: emotional intelligence, vulnerability and resilience. Working on each of these pillars, using the strategies here, gets you the mental equivalent of what strength, cardio, and mobility training do for your body. "These are the reps men need now," says psychiatrist Dr. Drew Ramsey. "Once you get a grasp on these three pillars, you'll see life-changing results in yourself and how you relate to others." They're what let you connect, adapt and really show up for life.'

PILLAR #1 

FINE-TUNE YOUR EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

DON'T MIND THE SQUISHY LANGUAGE. IT JUST MEANS UNDERSTANDING YOURSELF BETTER-BY EMBRACING HOW YOU ACTUALL FEEL. (AND MAN, THAT SURE FEELS GOOD.)

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