Founders Share: Health Habits to Prevent Startup Burnout
Startup life can be exhilarating, but it often comes at a cost to personal health and well-being. This article presents practical health habits, backed by experienced founders, to help entrepreneurs avoid burnout and maintain peak performance. From scheduling movement as a priority to implementing daily rituals, these expert-approved strategies offer a roadmap to sustainable success in the demanding world of startups.
- Schedule Movement as a Non-Negotiable Priority
- Protect Your Mornings for Fitness
- Integrate Daily Walks into Your Routine
- Implement the Founder’s 5-Minute Workout Rule
- Create Scheduled Environmental Blackout Periods
- Separate Work Blocks with Gym Sessions
- Establish a Daily Non-Negotiable Health Habit
- Treat Exercise Like Important Business Meetings
- Anchor Your Day to Consistent Health Practices
- Prioritize Blood Sugar and Nutrient Status
- Start Each Day with Movement
- Combine Work Tasks with Physical Activity
- Schedule Health Like Part of Business Plan
- Maintain a Steady Routine for Long-Term Success
- Practice Deep Breathing Techniques Regularly
- Make Morning Movement a Daily Ritual
Schedule Movement as a Non-Negotiable Priority
As a certified health coach, this question hits home! Building my startup, I learned that sacrificing my physical health ultimately hurt my business, leading to burnout.
Here’s how I tried to maintain my well-being:
Non-Negotiable Movement: I blocked out 20-30 minutes most days for consistent movement – a walk, a quick home workout. It wasn’t about intensity, but getting my blood flowing, clearing my head, and boosting energy. Even on difficult days, I forced myself, and always felt better afterward.
Smart Fueling: I stopped relying on caffeine highs and crashes. My focus shifted to balanced meals with protein and healthy fats for steady energy. While not always perfect, making conscious food choices and staying hydrated significantly improved my focus and productivity.
Protecting Sleep: This was the toughest. Cutting sleep felt like a shortcut, but it made me less productive. I started setting a firm bedtime and had a simple wind-down routine. The goal wasn’t perfect 8-hour nights, but prioritizing consistent rest, knowing sleep trumped another hour of work.
The most impactful routine is to schedule a daily “movement break” not tied to tough workouts or performance.
Block 20-30 minutes on your calendar like a critical meeting. This time is for simple movement (a walk, stretching, dancing) and a mental reset. It’s non-negotiable; you need this break, especially when busy. This small commitment brings huge benefits for mental clarity, stress reduction, and overall productivity.
Solveig Eitungjerde
Certified Health Coach, Livewellandexplore
Protect Your Mornings for Fitness
The health routine that has served me best while building businesses has been deceptively simple: sweat before screen. That one decision—starting my day with movement, even just 20 minutes—sharpened my focus, stabilized my mood, and created a mental buffer before diving into strategy, execution, and the daily firehose. In high-growth environments, where the to-do list never ends and context-switching is the norm, your physical state is the only dashboard that really matters.
I’ve scaled teams, launched brands, and managed multimillion-dollar transformations while prioritizing training for half-marathons, and I can say with confidence: discipline in fitness translates into resilience in leadership. If you’re a founder trying to avoid burnout, protect your mornings like you would your runway—because your energy is your real edge.
John Mac
Serial Entrepreneur, UNIBATT
Integrate Daily Walks into Your Routine
Maintaining my physical health while building my startup wasn’t always easy. There were definitely moments when hustle culture tried to convince me that sleep, meals, and movement were optional. But I learned quickly that burnout doesn’t just slow you down; it costs you clarity, creativity, and confidence, all of which are essential when you’re building something from the ground up.
One thing I did consistently and still do is daily walking, even if it’s just 20 minutes. It sounds simple, but that routine became non-negotiable. No phone, no meetings, just me, fresh air, and space to reset. It helped clear mental fog, reduce stress, and gave me room to think strategically instead of getting stuck in reactive mode all day. I often came back from a walk with more focus and better ideas than I had sitting at my desk for hours.
I also started treating movement as part of my job, not something I squeezed in after work. Because if my body’s not well, my mind can’t lead, decide, or show up for the mission I care about.
One health routine I’d strongly recommend to other founders is this:
Pick one physical habit you can repeat every day without negotiation and anchor it to your work schedule. Whether it’s stretching before you check emails, walking between calls, or doing five minutes of breathwork before meetings. Make it a system, not a side quest.
And don’t underestimate the basics: hydration, real meals, and quality sleep. These aren’t luxuries; they’re tools for resilience. You’re not just building a business; you’re building the you who’s going to carry that vision forward. And that version of you can’t thrive on burnout.
Your body is your engine. Take care of it like you’d take care of your business: proactively, consistently, and with respect.
Chinyelu Karibi-Whyte
Self-Care, Financial Wellness, Mindfullness & Resilience Advocate, Pheel Pretty
Implement the Founder’s 5-Minute Workout Rule
When I was building my psychiatric practice, the pressure to be “always on” was immense. It felt like every sacrificed lunch or skipped workout was a necessary trade-off for progress. I quickly learned this was a false economy. The mental fatigue from neglecting my physical health led to diminished returns; my decision-making was slower, and my capacity for deep, focused work was capped.
My approach shifted from viewing physical health as an optional luxury to seeing it as a critical business asset. As a psychiatrist, I knew that cognitive functions like strategic planning and emotional regulation are deeply tied to our physiological state. You cannot run a high-functioning business with a low-functioning brain and body. I stopped trying to “find” time for my health and started scheduling it with the same priority as a patient appointment.
The one routine I urge every founder to adopt is based on a simple mind game I played with myself. I’d commit to just a 5-minute workout. That was the only goal. Even on the most draining days, five minutes felt achievable, and once it was done, I had succeeded for the day. But what inevitably happened was that once I was at the gym and started moving, I’d always do more—usually at least 20 minutes.
Crucially, I also set an upper limit: I would not let myself stay longer than 45 minutes. This strategy did two things: it made starting easy and finishing rewarding. It prevented the workout from feeling like another chore and ensured I was “hungry” for the next session. This low-expectation, easy-first-step approach became my personal key to building a health routine that could withstand the pressures of startup life.
Ishdeep Narang, MD
Child, Adolescent & Adult Psychiatrist | Founder, ACES Psychiatry
Create Scheduled Environmental Blackout Periods
The mainstream obsession with step-counting, health-tracking, or rigid wellness schedules drains more time than it protects. The replacement? Scheduled environmental blackout periods twice per day with 90 minutes mid-day and 90 minutes after dark. Phones powered down. No screens. No content. Nothing enters. That intervention alone reduces overstimulation to baseline and clears enough bandwidth to cut unnecessary task-switching by at least 40 percent without adding another single activity.
Most routines tell founders to add more habits. That premise is flawed. Eliminate excess input and force full cognitive closure twice every 24 hours. Measured in cost: zero dollars. Tools required: none. Results in 3 weeks: decreased variance in delivery speed across operations, improved consistency in team feedback loops, and re-stabilized sleep quality across 22 of 30 nights without changing any other variable.
Louis Costello, MD
Founding Physician, Dynatech Lifestyle Mind Body Care
Separate Work Blocks with Gym Sessions
It’s very simple, but prioritizing going to the gym or scheduling physical activity during the workday has helped me tremendously. I work primarily remotely, so the routine I’ve developed is to separate two major blocks of work with a gym session in the afternoon. In practice, this looks like working for a few hours in the morning, then drinking my pre-workout at my desk before heading off to the gym in the afternoon. After returning, I work for another few hours before concluding my day. This routine helps me refocus and look at my morning tasks with fresh eyes if they’re not completed, and helps avoid burnout and diminishing returns.
Assaad Alaouie
Co-Founder and CEO, Deadline Bar
Establish a Daily Non-Negotiable Health Habit
Building my business pushed me to the edge of burnout more than once. The early days were long and chaotic. I started losing sleep, skipping meals, and neglecting physical activity. That broke down my focus and decision-making. What helped was establishing one simple non-negotiable: a daily walk. No calls, no multitasking. Just movement and silence. That 30-minute walk kept my mind sharp and gave me space to think clearly.
I also eliminated meetings before 10 AM and used that time to train with kettlebells and cook breakfast. It wasn’t about intensity. It was about consistency. I watched other founders around me burn out from poor sleep, lack of boundaries, and a diet built on caffeine and DoorDash. If you can’t manage your energy, your business suffers. One routine I always recommend is scheduling workouts like investor meetings. Put them on the calendar. Treat them as revenue-generating events. Without health, your ideas and drive collapse under pressure.
Founders like to chase quick fixes, but your body doesn’t care about hustle culture. It responds to routine, rest, and movement. Get those right, and you stay in the game longer than those who burn bright and disappear.
Aspen Noonan
CEO, Elevate Holistics
Treat Exercise Like Important Business Meetings
Building a startup can easily turn into a 16-hour-a-day sprint if you let it, and I did, for a while. What helped me reset was committing to daily walks without my phone. No podcasts, no Slack, just movement and silence. It sounds simple, but it became a mental reset I could rely on, especially during emotionally intense product or fundraising weeks.
One health routine I’d recommend to other founders: schedule movement like you schedule meetings. If it’s not on the calendar, it won’t happen—but if it is, it can become your most productive hour of the day.
Startup stress is real. Movement helps you metabolize it.
Ali Yilmaz
Co-Founder&CEO, Aitherapy
Anchor Your Day to Consistent Health Practices
When I was building a startup, I engaged in small amounts of exercise, typically short daily workouts consisting of 20 minutes of bodyweight training or yoga. This practice relieved stress and ensured a steady flow of energy without requiring significant time commitments.
One health habit I suggest to other founders is blocking off non-negotiable times for physical activity. Treating these as important appointments makes it less likely for you to skip them, even during stressful periods.
Staying fit doesn’t require perfection; it requires showing up on a regular basis. Small actions done consciously every day can contribute to preventing burnout and maintaining performance.
Blen Tesfu
MD, Welzo
Prioritize Blood Sugar and Nutrient Status
I built my startup the same way I train for 100-mile races—one brutal, focused, disciplined block at a time. To avoid burnout, I made movement sacred. Before meetings, strategy, or chaos—I run. It’s not just fitness; it’s identity reinforcement. It reminds me I’m the kind of person who shows up, even when it’s hard. My advice to founders? Don’t “fit in” health. Anchor your day to it. Make it the first promise you keep.
Stephen Mater
CEO, Altitude Group Belize
Start Each Day with Movement
While building my startup, maintaining physical health was non-negotiable—especially since I teach patients the importance of preventing burnout through metabolic balance. One key strategy I relied on was following a non-inflammatory diet: focusing on clean proteins, healthy fats, and plenty of vegetables, while avoiding inflammatory triggers like gluten, dairy, refined sugars, and seed oils. This helped me stabilize blood sugar, reduce fatigue, and keep mental clarity high—critical when running a business.
I also made sure to supplement with B vitamins, particularly B1 and B5, to support my adrenals and nervous system during periods of high stress and long hours. This helped prevent the energy crashes and brain fog that many founders experience.
If I had to recommend just one health routine to other founders, it would be this: prioritize your blood sugar and nutrient status every day, even when you’re busy. What you eat and how you support your nervous system directly impacts your ability to think clearly, make good decisions, and sustain the pace required to grow a company—without burning out. Building a business is a marathon, not a sprint, and your physiology must be aligned to match that demand.
Dr. Jonathan Spages
Doctor, Author, Advanced Natural Health Center
Combine Work Tasks with Physical Activity
In the unpredictable whirlwind of building a startup, physical health often slips to the bottom of the priority list. But I learned—through trial, error, and a bout of exhaustion—that scheduling health like a business meeting is not optional; it’s essential. Burnout doesn’t send a calendar invite—it sneaks up silently, disguised as productivity.
What changed everything for me was treating morning exercise as a non-negotiable ritual. I’d start every day with movement—whether it was a brisk walk, a 20-minute strength session, or a short yoga flow. It wasn’t about becoming ultra-fit; it was about sending a signal to my body and mind: you matter first. Doing this first thing ensured that no matter how chaotic the rest of the day got, I had one win already in the bag. That sense of control—of victory—became a powerful antidote to stress.
Equally important was the structure I built around my workdays using the Pomodoro Technique. Instead of grinding through 10-hour marathons, I broke my day into 25-minute sprints, followed by 5-minute breaks. After four cycles, I’d take a longer 30-minute pause, often stepping outside or doing a light stretch. These micro-breaks acted as pressure release valves, keeping my focus sharp and energy sustainable. I used a timer religiously—because willpower is unreliable, but systems aren’t.
One routine I always recommend to other founders: schedule fixed, immovable breaks into your day. Block them in your calendar like investor calls. When the world feels like it’s on fire and the to-do list is a mile long, it’s easy to think, “I’ll rest later.” But later rarely comes. Fixed breaks rewire your day around sustainability, not just hustle. And they send a powerful message to your team, too: resilience matters more than burnout bravado.
Building a startup takes everything—but it shouldn’t take your health. Treat your body like your co-founder: protect it, invest in it, and make time for it no matter how busy you are. After all, no pitch deck looks good when you’re running on fumes. Let health be part of your business strategy—not an afterthought. Your future self will thank you.
Richie Gibson
Owner/Dating Coach, DATING BY RICHIE
Schedule Health Like Part of Business Plan
You can get a lot done while you’re walking. I got into the habit of holding remote brainstorming sessions and making essential phone calls while I went out for long walks. It helped me to get my steps in and keep my cardio strong even as I was working long hours.
Jonathan Palley
CEO, QR Codes Unlimited
Maintain a Steady Routine for Long-Term Success
I treated my health as if it were part of the business plan—because it is. One of the smartest things I did early on was to schedule physical activity the same way I scheduled meetings. Even during chaotic days, I carved out 30-45 minutes for exercise—sometimes that meant a gym session, but often it was just a walk, stretch, or bodyweight workout to reset my brain.
The one health routine I’d recommend to every founder?
Morning movement + light before screens.
Even just 10-15 minutes of physical activity and natural light first thing in the morning regulates your energy, focus, and stress levels like nothing else. You don’t need to be perfect—you just need to be consistent.
Because if your body crashes, your startup will eventually follow. Staying well is staying sharp.
Okan Uckun
Tattoo Artist / Founder, MONOLITH STUDIO
Practice Deep Breathing Techniques Regularly
If you push yourself to the limit every day, burnout will overtake you before you reach your goal.
While building my startup, I was also working full-time and raising a young family, so I had to be ruthless with my routine. I dedicated one focused hour to the business each night, made it to the gym 3-4 times a week, and adhered to a consistent bedtime. It wasn’t glamorous, but it kept me steady. If you get good sleep and maintain a regular gym routine, at the very least you’ll preserve your physical health.
Going all in for a few months is meaningless if you can’t stay committed for the long haul.
Adam Boucher
Head of Marketing, Turtle Strength
Make Morning Movement a Daily Ritual
Many people underestimate the power of deep breathing. It’s not the flashiest form of physical care, but breathing properly impacts every system in your body, from cognitive function to muscle recovery. You can be hitting the gym and getting a full eight hours of sleep, but if you’re constantly shallow-breathing or unconsciously holding your breath during stressful moments, you may be undermining all of that effort without realizing it.
This was exactly my experience. When I was launching my latest venture, my stress levels peaked. The workload was massive, and I’m no longer in my twenties—I was feeling fatigue more acutely than ever. I couldn’t figure out why I was so drained, despite doing all the right things.
It wasn’t until a yoga instructor gently pointed out that I was holding my breath during poses that something clicked. If I was unconsciously doing it in class, what were the chances I was doing the same during back-to-back meetings, frantic typing sessions, and stressful calls at work? Pretty high, it turned out.
I started diving into breathwork resources online, including a few from cardiopulmonary specialists. I discovered that what I thought was just a minor quirk—pausing my breath while concentrating — was a deeply ingrained habit that was sending stress signals through my body all day.
I began practicing three simple but powerful techniques:
1. Box breathing: Inhale for 4 counts, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4. This helped regulate my nervous system, especially before big meetings.
2. Diaphragmatic (belly) breathing: Placing one hand on my chest and one on my stomach to train myself to breathe deeply and properly.
3. Extended exhalation: Making my exhale longer than my inhale to shift from a fight-or-flight state to a calm, parasympathetic mode.
These techniques weren’t hard, but consistency was key. Over the next few weeks, I noticed a real shift: better focus, deeper sleep, and yes, reduced fatigue.
To other founders, I’d say: In the hustle of entrepreneurship or everyday stress, don’t overlook this incredibly simple and powerful practice. The next time you’re feeling tense or off your game, check in with your breath. It might just be the reset you didn’t know you needed.
Jon Hill
Managing Partner, Tall Trees Talent
