eat like a dog

Why you need to start eating like a dog, fixing home insurance, and why you need to cut your bad habits first

Author

Morgan Tate
September 05, 2025

"It's not the daily increase, but the daily decrease. Hack away at the unessential."

  • Bruce Lee

Right now there's a growing trend of fitness influencers committed to "living forever" by optimizing every biomarker in their lives—some even tracking their nighttime erections (yes, that's a real thing).

Meanwhile, most people's health routines resemble a DIY bathroom tiling job: inconsistent and done in a rush.

I've met "health optimizers" who put the "geek" in "health geek" yet haven't seen any returns—let alone diminishing returns—from their endless routine optimization.

The point is simple: most people just need to start doing the thing, rather than obsessing over it.

Too often, people hide behind excuses like, "I don't have the right workout gear" or "I don't have a red light therapy mask" or (in dire exasperation), "but my house uses LED bulbs and not filament bulbs! How am I supposed to get deep sleep in this mental psychosis chamber I call my home?!"

the simple health routine

Consider this basic routine that, if completed consistently, would transform most people's lives:

  1. Getting 8 hours of sleep

  2. Drinking 1-2 big glasses of water when you wake up

  3. Completing a 20-minute workout daily (here's 6 to start)

  4. Stretching before bed

  5. Limiting or eliminating alcohol

  6. Eating a dog food diet

record scratch

A what diet? I promise I'm not a sicko, here's what I mean:

how to eat like a dog

Controversial take: having too much variety in your diet can be problematic.

Why?

  1. It makes tracking calories difficult

  2. Cooking new recipes constantly requires too much time and effort (often resulting in Uber Eats orders)

Meanwhile, your dog eats the same bowl of kibble every day—yet they're more excited about it than you've been for any meal in your life!

Not to get all "there are kids starving in Africa" but, well, there are people starving in Africa. So appreciate your privilege of having such food abundance that you can get sick of eating.

Introducing the Dog Food Diet (I don't think that label will catch on):

  1. Eat the same breakfast every day (keep it simple and easy)

  2. Select 5-7 meals to cook and buy groceries accordingly. These will serve as both dinner AND lunch (leftovers from dinner become lunch)

  3. Rotate the meals every 4-8 weeks (or as frequently as needed)

Benefits include better understanding your daily caloric intake (apps make this easy), your body becoming accustomed to your eating patterns, and—perhaps most importantly—a simple approach to eating healthy. The hardest part is maintaining discipline and developing a dog-like mentality toward eating: just being happy with what's in your bowl.

Ironically, I'm writing this from a train in Italy where I've done the absolute opposite of the dog food diet for the past week. But you know what's embarrassing? I actually kind of miss my regular weekly meals 🙈

Happy eating, mis amigos.

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idea of the week 💡

Credit: Idea Browser

  • problem: Homeowners in storm-prone areas are getting blindsided by insurance premium spikes or complete coverage denials, with no way to understand or address their climate risk profile.

  • idea: ClimateShield - a platform providing detailed, insurance-company-approved risk assessments that give homeowners the data they need to fight back against unfair rate increases. Users upload property details to receive comprehensive reports showing exactly what insurers see when evaluating climate risk.

  • how it makes money: $199 per assessment with premium renewal protection, targeting homeowners facing 30-300% insurance increases in coastal and wildfire zones. Premium tier at $499/year for continuous monitoring and support during appeals. Potential for $10M+ ARR by solving a critical problem in high-risk regions.

  • why it might succeed: Property-specific data combined with actual insurance underwriting criteria creates reports that carry weight with insurers. Each assessment includes ROI-prioritized mitigation recommendations showing exactly which improvements will save the most on premiums.

  • why it might fail: Might face resistance from insurance companies unwilling to honor third-party assessments, and competition from insurers who may develop their own transparency tools rather than work with an intermediary.

workout of the week

Three workouts for this weekend:

at-home workout:

Complete this HIIT circuit 3 times:

  • 40 seconds of jumping jacks

  • 15 spider-man push-ups (bring knee to elbow)

  • 30-second hollow body hold

  • 15 Bulgarian split squats (each leg)

Challenge: Add a 45-second mountain climber finisher after the final round

gym workout:

  • 4x10 front squats at 70% of your max

  • 3x12 incline dumbbell press

  • 4x10 cable face pulls

  • Finisher: 3-minute EMOM of 8 kettlebell swings + 5 burpees

outdoor workout:

Complete at your local park:

  • 12-minute tempo run (maintain challenging but sustainable pace)

  • Find a bench: 4 sets of 12 decline push-ups + 10 box jumps

  • At open space: 3 rounds of 10 broad jumps + 20 reverse lunges

  • Final challenge: 3-minute plank series (1 min standard, 1 min side, 1 min high plank shoulder taps)

tweet of the week

I’ve spoken about the positive power of compounding habits - negative compounding habits are even more powerful and destructive:

video of the week

In this video, I breakdown seller financing and its importance in M&A transactions - this is a must-watch if you’re looking to buy or sell a business.

my plugs

every second counts