Frugal Tennis Improvement

On November 30, 2019January 10, 2020 By Mr WayIn Finances, Fitness, Frugality, Optimisation4 Comments

As you probably know by now, we’re always looking to optimise in every area of our lives.

My latest obsession in this regard is with my tennis, as discussed in Tennis Mindset. I’ve decided to push myself to develop to the next level. I really want to compete with players who currently thrash me! I’m determined to be the best I can be.

“Make the most of yourself….for that is all there is of you.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

In order to make such a large improvement, my game needs some fairly fundamental changes. This won’t simply happen by playing more regularly – I need to go back to basics and change my technique.

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Tennis Mindset

On October 19, 2019January 10, 2020 By Mr WayIn Fitness, Optimisation2 Comments

3 Similarities Between Tennis and Financial Independence

In Frugal Fitness we mentioned that I play competitive tennis alongside my strength training. This is something I have increasingly taken more seriously, with a real desire to improve.

As I write this, the summer season has just finished and I’m aiming to use the winter months to address some fundamental weaknesses in my game. The aim is to take the step up to the next level and compete with a higher standard of player!

Throughout this process I’ve discovered some familiar themes. The core principles I need to follow in order to improve my tennis have similar relevance for life in general. The mental side of the game aligns with skills I had already learnt on my path to financial independence. I call this the tennis mindset!

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My ‘Monthly’ Money Saver

On October 8, 2019January 10, 2020 By Miss WayIn Frugality, Optimisation2 Comments

4 Reasons to Switch to a Menstrual Cup!

Mooncup

Us girls have a lot to put up with once a month. For those lucky few, periods come and go without too much disruption to their lives. Unfortunately, I have never been that lucky. Ever since mine started they have been a monthly ordeal. Either very heavy, very painful, extremely emotional or often all three!! I am sure many women experience similar.

On top of this, being on your period can be expensive! There are definitely frugal ways of approaching this but often the cheaper sanitary options are a lot less comfortable or effective. Having tried lots of options through the years I have settled very happily on the ‘menstrual cup’.

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How We Cut Our Food Shopping Bill In Half

On September 28, 2019January 10, 2020 By A Way to LessIn Finances, Frugality, Optimisation1 Comment

Over the last few years we have gone through the process of optimising almost every aspect of our spending. One of the biggest changes has been to our food shopping bill. We managed to cut our bill by more than half!

Food shopping is one of the biggest items in most people’s budgets. If you can manage to cut this in half like we did, it can have a huge impact on your ability to save more. All of these savings can really add up and help you to retire earlier!

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Frugal Four – Episode 1!

On September 14, 2019January 10, 2020 By A Way to LessIn Finances, Frugal Four, Frugality, Optimisation2 Comments

Welcome to the first in the series we’re going to call the Frugal Four! We wanted a way to share the frugal tips and tricks we’ve picked up over the years. The aim is to provide a brief summary of a few little hacks we’ve enjoyed using in the hope it inspires you to save some money yourselves!

Without further ado, here goes!

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Blood Donation

On June 29, 2019January 10, 2020 By Mr WayIn Optimisation2 Comments

Having just completed my 25^th blood donation, I wanted to write a brief article about my experiences so far.
Giving blood is one of the most self-less acts you can do, giving the chance of survival to those in critical condition, or furthering research into life-saving treatments. It’s something I will continue to do for as long as I am able and I hope you will consider doing so as well!
This post will focus on my experience of giving blood with NHS Blood and Transplant in the UK. See www.blood.co.uk for more information. The process will obviously be different in other countries so do your own research.
Mr Way

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A Way to Less……. What?

On June 22, 2019January 10, 2020 By A Way to LessIn Optimisation2 Comments

Our name means a lot of different things to us.

In our quest for a simpler way of living we’re reducing lots of aspects of our lives. We wanted to create this post to give you an idea of what ‘A Way to Less’ means to us and how we are striving to improve our lives throughout this journey.

When people first think of financial independence, they often think you need MORE. More money, to be able to buy more things, to live a happier life. But throughout our journey so far, we have actually found that most of our happiness is generated through LESS.

An easy example of this is going out to restaurants. For some, this is a weekly occurrence (or more!). When something is done so often, it can quickly lose that ‘special’ feeling. It may sound obvious that going out to eat less will improve your financial position. What may not be so obvious is that it is actually likely to make you HAPPIER too.

We only eat out around once per month or two now. Because it is such a treat, we really look forward to each outing and plan it in great detail. When you apply this to various different activities, you soon end up much better off AND happier. A double win!

So without further delay, here are some examples of what our name means to us.

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The Skill of Life Design

On June 1, 2019May 27, 2019 By Mr WayIn Optimisation4 Comments

‘Life Design’ is something we’ve mentioned in a few posts now. But what do we mean?

Since we started this journey, we have hugely improved our lives in a lot of different areas. This hasn’t happened by luck. It has been a process of research, planning and execution. As we like to say, we have learnt to CHALLENGE EVERYTHING!

This whole process was kick started when Mr Way discovered the world of personal finance. The first step was reading Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki. This started a money journey including property investment seminars, individual stock picking and (thankfully) finally discovering the FIRE world through Mr Money Mustache.

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Productivity Systems

On May 25, 2019May 24, 2019 By Mr WayIn Optimisation2 Comments

The biggest barrier to productivity is finding the motivation to get started. Motivation can often be hard to come by in a modern world, full of distractions. This is particularly relevant to those of us still working full time. Juggling hobbies, alongside a full time career, can make it seem almost impossible to keep on top of the most simple of tasks in life.

In order to ensure progress is made in all aspects, I find it important to have a productivity system in place. This allows me to keep track of my short and long term goals.

I’ve always had a relatively poor long term memory. This means I find it difficult to remember outstanding tasks and goals. This can quickly become overwhelming. Because of this, it is vital for me to have a logical and easy to use system for keeping track of this information.

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Bodyweight Fitness

On May 18, 2019January 10, 2020 By Mr WayIn Fitness, Optimisation1 Comment

As Miss Way mentioned in Frugal Fitness, bodyweight fitness (BWF) is a form of strength training. I wanted to create this separate post to give you a bit more detail on BWF, because I love it so much!

So What Actually Is Bodyweight Fitness?!

Essentially, BWF involves using your own bodyweight to perform resistance training. This type of training can accommodate anyone – from absolute beginners to Olympic level athletes. Exercises range from simple push-ups, squats and dips to advanced movements like the planche, front lever or one arm pullup.

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