Being a business owner is no easy task. It requires dedication, consistency, and investment. But there are other ways to invest in your business than just the financial kind.

In fact, investing time and effort into your physical health is a proven method to help a business grow. It improves sleep quality, cognitive processing, mental health, stamina, and energy levels to name a few. Each of these qualities are essential in running a profitable operation and reaching your business goals. Business and fitness are more intertwined than you think.

But, like most entrepreneurs, you probably don’t want to be simply taught the theory and research that proves this. Instead, hear from some of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs who testify that exercise is a huge driving force behind their riches.

Ariana Huffington

Ariana Huffington co-founded HuffPost (formerly known as The Huffington Post) in 2005, a news website and political blog that averages around 25 million website visitors every month. Huffington has now written over 15 books and has a net worth of approximately £76 million.

However, she attributes a strict morning workout and meditation regime as the key to her business success. In an interview with My Morning Routine, she said:

“I really began to take my morning routine seriously after my painful wake-up call in 2007, when I fainted from sleep deprivation and exhaustion, hit my head on my desk, and broke my cheek.”

Sleep deprivation causes a higher risk of injury at work and can have fatal consequences on physical health. It also lowers a person’s ability to manage stress and anxiety, leading to more errors in day-to-day tasks.

Regular exercise is a way to combat sleep deprivation and burnout. It boosts melatonin in the brain which regulates sleep-wake cycles, so it’s easier to fall asleep and the quality of it is better. What’s more, you can throw away your sleep medication and avoid its potential risks.

Now Huffington spends 30 minutes on a stationary bike before starting work and encourages any business owner to do the same.

Bill Gates

Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft in 1975 and has since helmed titles such as “the youngest ever billionaire” and “the world’s wealthiest person.” He currently boasts a net worth of over £85 billion.

Gates has said over the years that exercise is a crucial aspect of coping with the mental challenges of running a successful business. Particularly, racket games like tennis, badminton, and ping-pong have helped him develop sharp cognitive skills that he uses in business. He shared his thoughts on pickleball with GQ:

“For the mind, it requires us to learn some rules and terminology, tests our memory, and leads to strategic thinking as it improves our ability to make quick decisions.”

When it comes to mental and physical fitness, Gates is on the ball. Sports like pickleball increase blood flow and oxygen levels which leads to improved concentration and productivity.

It also releases endorphins (feel-good chemicals) which drive motivation and creativity. Exercise has the capability to increase business innovation and, consequently, profit margins too.

Maybe some of the best business ideas come to people on the pickleball court, not in the shower.

Richard Branson

Richard Branson co-founded the Virgin Group when he was 20 years old and the conglomerate has ventured into products and services including music, engineering, and even space travel. Today his net worth is reported to be approximately £2.4 billion.

However, the 75-year-old still commits to a fitness regime to handle the mental and physical demands of running a global empire. He just does it mostly from his private island, which certainly helps with motivation.

Branson hits the gym every day and compliments his workout with games of tennis in the morning and the evening. He also says that kite surfing offers huge benefits to his mental health. He told Men’s Health:

“It’s just the most beautiful sport there is.”

Indeed, exercise has been proven to do wonders for people’s stress levels. It lowers the levels of cortisol (stress hormone) in the body, offering people more clarity of mind when making important decisions. Exercise also provides good relief from tension and frustration, allowing for more rational thought processing when it comes to business management.

The good news is that you don’t need a private island to reap the benefits of a healthy body and mind. In fact, fitting some exercise into your day can boost time management by 72% and your motivation to work by 41% according to Jim McKenna, Professor of Physical Activity and Health at Leeds Beckett University.

Emma Grede

Emma Grede has made waves in the fashion and home appliance industries, co-founding multi-million-dollar companies such as denim, Good American, and Safely with the Kardashian family. She has an estimated net worth of approximately £282 million.

The entrepreneur and mother of four has said that a morning workout before 8:30 is what makes her feel empowered. It energises her with the stamina to complete the tasks that come with balancing multiple businesses and parenthood.

Exercise has been shown to help people multi-task and maintain routines for better performance. It also gives you the resilience to endure long working hours, even when you’re under pressure from different sources.

Interestingly, Grede says that she balances her business, personal health, and parental responsibilities best when she acknowledges that perfection isn’t possible. She told E!:

“Give yourself some space and room and know that you might be able to have it all, but not all the time.”

Her dedication to consistency over perfection is inspiring, particularly when many people mistake intensity as the primary drive of business and fitness growth.

A regular morning workout like Grede’s is enough to create outstanding results in your professional and personal life.

Mark Zuckerberg

Mark Zuckerberg is one of the world’s most famous entrepreneurs. He co-founded Facebook in his Harvard dormitory in 2004 and is now the third-richest person in the world. He has a net worth of approximately £182.8 billion.

As chairman of Meta Platforms (Facebook’s global overlord), there are many priorities that Zuckerberg sets out each day, and one of them is fitness. He said in a Facebook Q&A:

“Staying in shape is very important. Doing anything well requires energy, and you just have a lot more energy when you’re fit. I make sure I work out at least three times a week – usually first thing when I wake up.”

Zuckerberg isn’t wrong. A burst of exercise delivers more oxygen to your tissues and, in turn, reduces fatigue at work. It can supply more energy to business owners who need to sustain long working hours or complete mundane tasks that would normally drain motivation.

Exercise has long-term benefits for your energy levels as opposed to short-term. While you might feel briefly tired after a workout, the health gains you’ll get from improved sleep, oxygen levels, blood circulation, and endorphins will improve your energy in the long run.

Like Zuckerberg once said: “I’m here to build something for the long-term. Anything else is a distraction.”

Final Thoughts

The act of removing yourself from work to focus on something else may seem strange at first, but if you set time aside for exercise your working hours will be far more productive.

Burnout will not help you build a successful business, and the 5 entrepreneurs listed above clearly testify to that. By committing to fitness, they’ve improved their sleep, cognition, mental health, energy, and stamina. They’ve achieved their long-term goals, and their businesses have flourished at the same rate as their health.

Investment takes many forms in business, but there is nothing more valuable than investing in yourself.