The Carnivore Entrepreneur Show

🎙️ Episode 17: Master Your Stress or It Will Master You. The True Cost of High-Performance Pressure

• Grant Hutchby • Season 1 • Episode 17

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Stress is the silent killer of more entrepreneurs than failure ever will.

In this raw and revealing episode, I take you inside Chapter 7 of The Carnivore Entrepreneur: Healthy Body to uncover how stress, when left unchecked, can destroy your body, business, and bank account from the inside out.

From betrayal and back injuries to financial crisis and fraud, I share the brutal moments that nearly broke me and the frameworks that rebuilt me stronger. This isn’t theory. This is the real-life stress mastery system that transformed my health, clarity, and financial outcomes forever.

If you’re a successful but stuck entrepreneur running on fumes, juggling pressure, and quietly burning out behind the scenes, this episode is your wake-up call.

💥 What you’ll discover in this episode:

  • My most painful stress moments and the business lessons hidden inside
  • The 8 Principles of Stress Mastery every entrepreneur must live by
  • How to stop stress from sabotaging your decisions, income, and relationships
  • A 7-day plan to reduce anxiety, reset your nervous system, and reclaim control
  • Why sleep, breathwork, fasting, and cold water therapy are business tools
  • The true reason you react emotionally under pressure (and how to stop)
  • The physiology reset I use before every high-stakes moment

💡 Here’s the truth: stress isn’t the problem. Your relationship with it is.
 

When you master stress, you unlock clarity, resilience, energy, and ultimately, true wealth.

🎯 Remember Free Resources - access in the Show Footer.

🌐 Connect & Level-Up

🎁 Free Resource Vault

  • 🥩 Performance Plate Framework — Click Here
  • 🏋️‍♂️ One-&-Done Savage Set + 3 Cheat Sheets — Click Here
  • 🧠 Focus & Flow Journal — Click Here
  • 📈 12-Week Results Sprint Plan — Click Here
  • 📆 Weekly PowerSprint Planner — Click Here

Plug these tools into your routine, share the wins with a fellow Carnivore Entrepreneur, and keep building true wealth on your terms, with strength, energy & purpose.

Unknown:

For years, I thought stress was a necessary part of being successful, but now I know better. In 2015 I made one of the toughest decisions of my life. I left my marriage and moved 250 miles away from my kids. Nothing could have prepared me for the gut wrenching stress of managing that separation. 2018 Triple Threat job marriage and a broken back the you. Chapter Seven, is your stress making you stronger or slowly killing you? Let's talk about stress as entrepreneurs. Stress isn't just familiar. It's a close friend. It sits next to you when you're working late at night, follows you on weekends and even tags along on holiday. For years, I thought stress was a necessary part of being successful, but now I know better. Unmanaged stress is the biggest destroyer of your health, wealth and happiness. Believe me, I've learned this lesson the hard way, multiple times. My Wake Up Calls, learning stress mastery the hard way. If you're reading this right now, thinking, Yeah, but grant you don't know what I'm dealing with. Trust me, I get it. I've walked through fire more than once, each stressful situation, bringing valuable lessons. Let me share a few critical moments that reshaped my understanding of stress and how it gave me the tools I'm now passing on to you quick note before we dive in, you'll notice I've not included deaths in the family here. This is intentional grief carries a completely different type of stress, one that's deeply personal and unpredictable. Take 2012 for example. When my nan passed away, it hit me hard. She was like a second mum, but at that point, I was stuck in the comfort trap of life. Her passing pulled me even further inward. Then in 2017 when my granddad died, it was completely different. I was in a stronger place mentally, that loss became fuel, and shortly after we launched our property business, grief isn't linear. It doesn't follow logic. So if you've experienced loss, know this, there's no right or wrong way to respond. These moments are yours. Don't compare them. Just honour them. 2015, family debt and new beginnings in 2015 I made one of the toughest decisions of my life. I left my marriage and moved 250, miles away from my kids. Nothing could have prepared me for the gut wrenching stress of managing that separation from emotional battles with my ex wife about my children's visits to driving five hour journeys every other weekend just to keep our bond strong. Adding fuel to this fire was over 30 grand of personal debt and moving to a completely unfamiliar place, the anxiety was real heavy and constant. Key lesson during this period, I learned critical importance of controlling what you can and letting go of the rest. Stress. Mastery begins with clarity about what's truly within your power to change worrying over things outside your control drains you. Focusing on actionable steps empowers you. 2018 triple threat, job, marriage and a broken back. Fast forward to 2018 I thought I had stress under control, wrong again. Within the same year, Kay and I started kg short stay, moved house and got married, all while juggling demanding corporate job. Then just to make things interesting, I seriously injured my back, an injury that completely derailed my physical training, crushed my productivity and left me vulnerable, both physically and mentally. Key lesson I discovered the hard way that stress isn't just mental, it manifests physically. Mastering stress requires deliberate self care, proper training, recovery, nutrition and rest. Ignore your body's signals and stress will break you physically first, then mentally, 2019 going all in, then getting robbed. I finally took the leap, quitting my secure job to become a full time entrepreneur within days, literally days, our cleaner stole 10,000 pounds worth of linen, crippling our short term rental business overlay to protect our reputation, Kay and I chose to personally absorb all costs. Financial stress hit us hard, testing our resilience to the max. Key lesson I learned the importance of resilience through acceptance. When crisis hits, accept it quickly, adapt swiftly and take the. Decisive action, avoiding or dwelling on problems magnifies stress exponentially. 2020, COVID chaos and losing my licence. COVID arrived like a hurricane, nearly destroying our industry overnight. As if that that wasn't enough, I also got banned from driving for six months for accumulating too many speeding points. Kay had to shoulder the burden of every journey, local trips and drives across the country, adding pressure to our marriage and daily life. Key lesson the pandemic taught me about adaptability, but losing my licence taught me humility. Stress is often about ego and control. Being forced to rely on pay taught me to delegate and share burdens openly, I realised that I don't need to carry everything alone. 2023 cash flow crisis, after enjoying life's rewards a little too liberally, reality hit us with serious cash flow issues. Suddenly we found ourselves borrowing money just to sustain our business. Debt and financial strain tested my mental strength daily. Key lesson this taught me, financial discipline is not just a business skill, it's a mental health strategy. Mastering stress means financial clarity and facing numbers honestly, openly and without fear. 2024 betrayal and fraud, just when I thought we were stable, our head of operations, a man we trusted implicitly, someone we saw as family. He looked after our kids, defrauded us of almost 200,000 pounds. Imagine discovering that betrayal, the sheer disbelief, anger and helplessness. As I write this, Kay and I are still clearing up the mess he left behind. Key lesson from this betrayal, the greatest lesson I've learned is the power of trust, but verified trust, protecting your business with tighter systems, clearer accountability and sharper instincts, is crucial for stress mastery. Trust people that have safeguards in place to protect yourself from massive, unexpected stress, the carnivore entrepreneur, stress mastery framework, many strategies I've already shared in depth directly contribute to stress mastery. Let's revisit these quickly referencing where you can find detailed routines and science fact specifics. Principle one, daily mindfulness, breath work and journaling in chapter two, morning routines, I share my precise daily breath work and meditation routine each morning, immediately after a cold plunge, I sit in front of my sad light, breathing deeply and mindfully for around 10 minutes. Afterwards, I spend a few minutes journaling, capturing gratitude, goals and reflections. Why mindfulness practices directly reduce stress hormones. Harvard Medical School's extensive research, Harvard health publishing, 2018 found that daily mindfulness reduces cortisol, anxiety and even inflammation. My personal experience mirrors these findings. Mindfulness is a non negotiable, because being in control of your mind is paramount to managing stress. Action today, take three deep, slow breaths before your next meeting. Inhale for four seconds, hold for seven seconds, exhale for eight seconds. This simple technique can reset your state in under a minute. Principle two, sleep, like your wealth depends on it, as I shared in chapter four, optimising recovery quality sleep is crucial. I follow strict sleep hygiene practices, no screens or blue light one hour before bed, a dark, cool room and nightly magnesium supplementation to promote deeper sleep. Prioritising deep sleep significantly decreases stress levels, boost cognitive performance and improves emotional regulation. I treat sleep as a performance enhancing drug, and honestly, after spending years studying its effects, that's exactly what it is. If you're sleep deprived, your cortisol rises, stress amplifies, and your ability to handle even minor frustration plummets. A solid six to eight hours of quality sleep isn't optional for stress mastery. It's foundational action tonight. Go to bed 30 minutes earlier than usual, turn off all screens one hour before bedtime, notice how this small change affects your morning energy and stress levels. Principle three, strategic nutrition and supplementation. Stress and nutrition are entirely connected, as I detailed in chapter one, the carnivore entrepreneur performance plate, prioritising protein, healthy fats and strategic carbohydrates, stabilises blood sugar, supports hormonal balance and improves stress resilience beyond food, certain supplements have proven particularly effective for stress management. Ashwagandha research in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine found this stress balancing herb significantly reduces cortisol and perceives stress levels. I take 600 milligrammes daily magnesium glycinate beyond improving sleep quality, magnesium helps nerve function and relaxes my. Muscles, almost 80% of adults are deficient in this crucial mineral, vitamin d3, and k2 low vitamin D correlates with higher stress and anxiety. I primarily get my vitamin D from my sad light and morning sunlight exposure. If you don't use these methods, I recommend supplementing with 5000 IUs daily. I also take extra vitamin D when travelling feel sluggish or after being around someone who's sick, omega three fatty acids, studies show these reduce inflammation and cortisol during stressful periods. I take two to three grammes daily from high quality fish oil. My full supplement stack and recommendations can be found in chapter four recovery, but these four alone from form a powerful foundation for stress resilience. Action. Add one stress busting food to your next meal, wild salmon, dark chocolate, 85% plus or blueberries. Also add one stress reducing supplement Daily. These simple additions support your body's stress response. Principle four, movement medicine. Exercise isn't just for building muscle. It's your best natural stress reliever, as covered in chapter three. High intensity training, even brief sessions of intense exercise trigger a cascade of stress busting hormones. But here's something often missed during particularly high stress periods, sometimes less is more. When I'm navigating significant business challenges temporarily reduce workout intensity while maintaining frequency. This provides the stress relief benefits without adding additional recovery demands on an already tax system. The goal during high stress periods should be movement that energises rather than deplete even a 20 minute walk significantly reduces cortisol and clears mental fog. Never underestimate the power of simply moving your body when stress feels overwhelming action. Take a 10 minute walk outside right now, no phone, no distractions, just walk and breathe. Notice how your perspective shifts after this brief movement break principle five, cold exposure and heat therapy, as detailed in chapter five, biohacking, deliberate exposure to cold and heat creates beneficial stress response that strengthens your overall stress resilience. My cold plunges three to five minutes in ice cold water first thing in the morning. Have transformed my stress response. This practice trains your nervous system to remain calm under physical stress, which translates directly to improved emotional and psychological stress management. Research from the Wim Hof Institute confirms that regular cold exposure reduces inflammatory markers and improves mood. Saunas three to four times a week for 15 to 20 minutes trigger powerful heat shock proteins that help your cells stay strong under pressure, they also relax your body and calm your mind. Add hot cold contrast therapy, and you're training your nervous system to handle stress better, like flipping a switch between focus and recovery action. Try a 30 to 62nd Cold Shower tomorrow morning, focus on controlling your breath as the cold hits you. This simple practice builds mental resilience that transfers directly to business challenges. Principle six, strategic fasting, intermittent fasting, which I discussed in both chapter one, performance play and chapter five. Biohacking creates a beneficial stress response that ultimately strengthens your body's resilience to all forms of stress. I typically maintain an 18 six fasting schedule, 18 hours fasting, six hour eating window while fasting does teach me how to deal with stress better. I don't increase my fasting window when feeling stressed. In fact, when my body is under significant stress, I sometimes do the opposite. I'll extend my eating window to enjoy a meal out choosing healthy options or cook a nice meal with whole foods and share with family or friend. This social connection and enjoyment is an important part of my stress management strategy. Research in cell metabolism confirms that intermittent fasting increases BDNF, brain derived neurotrophic factor, a brain chemical that helps you handle stress and stay sharp. I've found that when I fast, my mind feels clearer. I make better decisions, and I don't react emotionally to pressure in the way I used to action. Try extending your overnight fast by two hours tomorrow, skip breakfast and have your first meal at 11am instead of 9am notice the mental clarity. This brief fast creates principle seven, find your off switch. Perhaps the most transformative stress mastery technique I've incorporated is having a deliberate off switch ritual. This is a simple, consistent practice that signals to your brain and body that work mode is over. My personal ritual includes three steps, a 62nd gratitude, reflection or celebrate something small, saying my affirmation a few times with high energy and a brief five minute meditation or breathing session. This ritual creates a psych. Psychological barrier between work stress and personal time without such a boundary, entrepreneurial stress bleeds into every aspect of life, creating a perpetual stress cycle that never allows for true recovery. Science supports this approach. Research in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology found that Psychological detachment from work during non work time significantly improves recovery from stress and prevents burnout action. Create a simple two minute off switch ritual. Today, it could be as simple as changing clothes, taking three deep breaths and saying, work is done. Allowed principle eight, the Tony Robbins physiology reset one of the most powerful tools I've discovered for immediate state change comes from Tony Robbins energy in motion strategy. This technique is perfect for those moments when you need to shift your state quickly before high stakes meeting, presentation or difficult conversation. Here's how it works, stand up straight with your shoulders back and chest out. Take a deep breath and hold it for three seconds. Clench your fists and tense your entire body for five seconds. Release everything with a forceful exhale. Smile broadly, even if you don't feel like it, move your body, jump, stretch, or do a quick power pose, I use this technique before extremely challenging conversation. For example, when I had to speak to all of our affected clients about the fraud that our head of operations committed despite the anger and betrayal, I felt, this reset allowed me to approach the situation with clarity and control, rather than emotional reactivity action before your next important meeting or call, take 30 Seconds to perform this physiology reset. Notice how your energy and confidence shifts immediately. Let me address some common concerns entrepreneurs have about implementing stress management strategies. Concern I have so much on my plate stress management just feels like one more thing to do. Solution, start with just one five minute practice, even brief mindfulness or breathing sessions yield significant benefits. Then integrate stress management into existing habits rather than treating it as separate. Example, use your morning coffee routine as a mindfulness moment or practice breathing techniques during your commute. Concern I'm already stressed about money. How can I afford things like massage therapy or supplement solution focus on zero cost strategies, sleep optimization, breathing techniques and free exercises, walking, body weight training, as your stress decreases and performance improves, gradually, add other element. Remember, stress management is an investment that pays dividends in productivity and health concern. Honestly, some stress helps me perform. I'm worried about losing my edge. Solution, you're absolutely right that some stress is beneficial, called eustress. The goal isn't to eliminate all stress, but to optimise your stress response. Eustress is the positive stress that motivates you, sharpens your focus and drives performance, like adrenaline before a big presentation or the challenge of a difficult project. This type of stress releases beneficial hormones like neuro epinephrine that enhances memory and alertness. The techniques in this chapter help you maintain this beneficial stress, eliminating destructive stress, distress that chronically elevates cortisol, impairs decision making and damages your health. Think of it as upgrading your stress management system, rather than removing stress entirely. Concern. I've tried meditation before, and my mind races too much, I can't do it. Solution that's completely normal a racing mind during early meditation attempts is not failure, it's the process working correctly. Start with guided meditation apps for beginners. Alternatively, try physical forms of mindfulness like walking meditation or breath work, which often feel more accessible to entrepreneurs with Active Minds. Your seven day mastery challenge ready to begin mastering stress immediately. Here's your simple seven day plan. Day one, start with five minutes of deep breathing, four seconds in, seven seconds hold eight seconds out first thing in the morning. Day two, at a brief evening gratitude practice, simply write down three things you're grateful for before bed. Day three, identify your top three stressors and categorise these each as within my control or outside of my control. Create one action step for each controllable stressor. Day Four, take a 20 minute walk without your phone, focusing only on your surroundings and physical sensations. Day five, try a one to three minute cold shower or face ice water immersion in the morning. Day six, create a two minute work to home transition ritual, eg, changing clothes. Take three deep breaths. Say work. Work is done. Allowed this simple sequence signals to your brain that work time has ended and personal time has begun. Day seven, review your week and identify which practices most effectively reduced your stress. Commit to continuing these specific techniques for another week. Track your stress levels on a scale of one to 10 each morning and evening. You'll likely see meaningful changes within days, not weeks or months. The true bottom line stress mastery equals Wealth Mastery. Stress management isn't just about feeling better, it directly impacts your wealth in measurable ways, decision quality. Research from the University of Southern California shows that chronic stress impairs decision making abilities and increases risk of porn, financial decisions, creativity and problem solving. Stanford research demonstrates that stress reduction techniques increase creativity problem solving by up to 30% relationship capital, stress directly impacts how others perceive and interact with you. Managing stress improves your relationship capital with team members, clients and partners. Energy and endurance. Stress is your energy's greatest thief. Mastering stress directly translates to having more physical and mental energy for wealth, building activities, long term focus, perhaps most importantly, stress. Mastery enables you to maintain long term thinking essential for creating true, sustainable wealth, rather than chasing short term gains. I've seen entrepreneurs at all levels transform not just their well being, but Their entire financial trajectory by implementing these stress management strategies. The entrepreneurs who create extraordinary wealth while maintaining their health and happiness aren't necessarily the most talented or hardest working. They're the ones who've mastered their stress response. Here's the simple truth, your ability to handle stress will ultimately determine your ceiling for wealth, success and fulfilment. Master stress and you remove the single greatest limiting factor in your entrepreneurial journey. Welcome to stress mastery the carnivore entrepreneur. Waste if this episode resonated with you, share it with someone who needs to hear it. You are a carnivore entrepreneur. Live life how it was supposed to be lived on your terms with strength, energy and purpose. I'll see you on the next episode. You.