Field Notes
2026 Field Notes
New writing from 2026. These are the ideas that feed the DadBody cohorts and the coaching work Dai does with men over forty.
September 2026
Strength training for men over 40: where to start
Why lifting matters more after 40 than before, and the simplest week that works.
September 2026
Can you build muscle after 40?
Yes. What changes with age, and the three things that decide it.
September 2026
Why your joints ache after training (and what to change)
Too much, too soon, and the warm-up you skipped. How to train without the ache.
September 2026
Warming up after 40: ten minutes that save the session
Raise, move, ramp. The ten minutes most men skip and pay for later.
September 2026
How to sleep better as a busy dad
A fixed wake time, a real wind-down, and the drink you do not need.
September 2026
Alcohol and sleep: what one drink really does
It knocks you out, then breaks the second half of the night.
September 2026
Why you wake at 3am
Alcohol, bladder, a busy head, or your breathing. What to try first.
September 2026
Recovery days: what to actually do on them
Walk, move gently, eat your protein, sleep. Not the couch, not another workout.
September 2026
Eating for fat loss after 40: a plain plan
Protein first, fewer liquid calories, and a deficit you can live with.
September 2026
Why you're hungry at 9pm
Too little food earlier, too little protein, too little sleep, or plain habit.
September 2026
Eating well when the kids eat chicken nuggets
One base meal, your own protein on top, and stop finishing their plates.
September 2026
Weekend eating: why Monday to Friday isn't enough
Five good days, two loose ones, and a scale that never moves.
September 2026
Low energy, low drive: what men over 40 should get checked
Blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, your breathing at night, and when testosterone is worth testing.
September 2026
Stress and your waistline
Poor sleep, stress eating, less movement. How the week shows up on your belt.
September 2026
Blood pressure in your 40s
No symptoms, very common, and very changeable. Know your number.
September 2026
The annual check-up worth asking for
What to bring, what to ask, and the screening you should know about.
September 2026
Mobility after 40: how to stop feeling stiff
Why you stiffen up after 40, and the plan that actually loosens you.
September 2026
Lower back pain from a desk job: what helps
Why rest makes it worse, and what the evidence says to do instead.
September 2026
Tight hips after 40: why they matter and what to do
Why so many men have them, and three ways to open them up.
September 2026
A 10-minute mobility routine for busy dads
Hips, upper back, shoulders, ankles. Ten minutes, no equipment.
September 2026
Drinking less after 40: a plain guide for dads
What the guidance says, and how to cut back without losing your social life.
September 2026
Does alcohol cause belly fat?
It is not just the calories. Here is how the beer belly really forms.
September 2026
How to drink less without missing out
Barbecues, work events, nights out. How to cut back and still show up.
September 2026
What happens when you stop drinking for 30 days
Sleep, energy, weight and mood. What a month off usually shows you.
September 2026
Cardio for men over 40: how much you really need
How much you need, why it matters, and a simple week that covers it.
September 2026
Zone 2 training explained for men over 40
What it is, how to find it without a lab, and how much to do.
September 2026
How many steps a day do you really need?
Where 10,000 came from, what the research says, and how to get there.
September 2026
VO2 max after 40: what it is and how to raise it
Why it is linked to a longer life, and the training that raises it.
September 2026
Hormones and weight gain in men over 40: what actually matters
What hormones really do to your weight after 40, and what to do before blaming them.
September 2026
Cortisol and belly fat: the stress-weight connection, explained plainly
Why stress lands on your waist, and what lowers cortisol in a real week.
September 2026
How to stop stress eating without white-knuckling it
Stress eating is a pattern, not a flaw. Here is how to break the pattern.
September 2026
Testosterone after 40: the lifestyle levers that actually move it
The five levers that move testosterone, ranked, before you spend a dollar on boosters.
September 2026
The weight loss plateau after 40: why it happens and what to do
Stalled after a good start? Here is why, and the calm way through it.
September 2026
Why diets fail after 40 (and what works instead)
Diets fail by design, not by willpower. Here is the slower thing that works.
September 2026
How to lose a dad bod
A coach's plain plan: the four behaviours, the first 28 days, and how long it really takes.
September 2026
Why you're tired all the time
Most men over forty who feel exhausted are not sleep deprived. What is actually going on.
September 2026
What do you actually want?
A coach asked me what I wanted for my life and I had no answer.
September 2026
You do not need an hour
The least exercise that actually does something, and the part everyone leaves out.
September 2026
Eating fat does not make you fat
What held up from my 2016 column, and the part I oversold.
September 2026
Why starting over keeps failing
You have done it five times. It is not discipline, and the fix is unglamorous.
September 2026
The DadBody project: what it is, who it is for, and why it works
Seven years ago I went looking for four dads over 40 to test an idea. What it became, and what it refuses to promise.
Field notes
How long it really takes to get back in shape
The real timeline, and every number from a sixty-day cohort of twenty-three men.
Since 2016
The Whole Life Fitness Manifesto
Thirty minutes a day. Fifteen of movement, five of stillness, ten of reading. The framework everything here runs on.