Our Duty is to Find Peace

Written: December 15th, 2025

On this morning’s walk — because the version I had yesterday just wasn’t it.

I had this whole newsletter drafted and nearly done yesterday. But something about it didn’t sit right. Not because it wasn’t solid — it was — but because it wasn’t true to where I am right now.

So I scratched it. Rewrote it this morning on my walk. And I’m sharing it here, just before I log off of social media for the rest of the day — a bit of a detox. Not disappearing. Just choosing quiet for the day.

This is something I’ve decided I’m going to do every week: a social media Sabbath. One full day where I unplug — no posting, no scrolling, no responding, no consuming. Just time with my wife, my work, my breath, God and soon, our first child.

When the noise gets too loud, the most powerful thing we can do is step away and listen to what’s truly important.

Personal Updates

I’m sitting at 209 pounds this morning.

Back in July, I got up to 224 pounds and felt like shit — still training jiu‑jitsu, still working out — but I’d hit cruise control and didn’t even realize it.

Seeing where I was in early 2024 — lean, sharp, clear — made me realize something:

I’d lost my edge.

And so I asked: How do I get it back?

The answer wasn’t another program or supplement stack.
It was community.

That’s why I created Forged. I needed to be around men who were serious — not competing, not performing — but training, growing, owning life, digging back into who the fuck they are.

And yeah — the physical work matters. I didn’t reinvent anything. I just got consistent:

• Three strength‑focused, circuit‑style kettlebell workouts per week
  

• Daily walks
  

• Tracking my macros and calories again
  

• Getting enough protein
  

• Relentless consistency — nothing fancy, just discipline
  

A little creatine. A little protein.
That’s it.

My medicine is real food, real work, time outside, community, and time alone with God.
And it fucking works.

Also — as of today:

• We’re days away from meeting our first baby
  

• I’m at 36,000 followers on IG
  
  

• I’ve filled my January Forged Fitness group
  

• And I got a message that reminded me exactly why this matters:
  

“I want to become a man with the kind of masculinity you embody.”

That’s it.
Not to teach. Not to perform.
But to live it — and share what I’m learning along the way.

What I’ve Been Feeling Lately — and Why I’m Logging Off Today

These last couple weeks, I felt it again.

The momentum.
The growth.
The engagement.

It was exciting — and then it started owning me.

I found myself checking follower counts.
Watching reels while siting next to my wife.
Refreshing for comments.
Telling myself “it’s work” — all while I wasn’t even present.

This isn’t my first rodeo. I’ve done the whole personal brand thing befoe. I’ve quit multiple times, because it wrecked my mental health.

This time, I told myself I’d handle it better. And I have… mostly.

But even now, I feel it creeping back in — that scroll spiral, that endless need for input, trying to find the next thing to talk about…the constant thoughts, that inner noise.

So today I’m choosing something different: quiet.
Not forever.
Not dramatic.
Just an intentional break.

I Used to Believe We All Needed to Be Informed

I used to believe it was everyone’s duty to know what was happening — to stay updated, to stay sharp, to follow every twist and turn in every corner of the world.

Now? I believe in something else:

Most people don’t need more information. They need less.
They don’t need to know everything that’s going . They need to be present and at peace.

But let me be clear:
There are people who are called to stay informed.
They watch the news, study the world, understand the Constitution and geopolitics — and that’s a real form of service. And I do believe I am one of those people…but I have to stay balanced.

The difference is this:

We don’t have to force everyone into that role.

If disconnecting — even becoming “uninformed” for a time — makes you a better father, a better husband, a better leader in your world, a better human, then that’s not ignorance — it’s peace.

If shutting it all off for a while means you show up more in your home, your work, your life — then that’s not weakness.
That’s clarity.

Go walk without a phone.
Sit outside without scrolling.
Look your wife in the eyes without distraction.
Talk to your people without half your mind in the comments.

You can live like you’re Amish, like it’s 1699 — and honestly, for some people, that would be a better fucking life, because they wouldn’t be angry and hateful.

Being disconnected isn’t ignorance — it’s being tuned into your life.

And that impact ripples outward just as much — maybe even more — than the guy who stays in every online skirmish.

You don’t have to save the world.
You just have to be excellent in your world.

Presence over panic.
Peace over performance.
Life over likes.

Final Word

I’m not here to tell anyone what to do.

I’m just a man who caught himself slipping — and I’m sharing what I’m doing to course‑correct.

You don’t have to do it like me.
But if something here hit, then you already know where to start:

Step away.
Breathe.
Return to what matters.

And you better believe — if I ever get to a point where I know I can’t handle this, where I truly start to lose myself again… if the followers, the content, the pressure start pulling me away from being the husband, the father, the coach, or the leader I’m called to be —
I’ll throw it all away.
100,000 followers? Half a million? Doesn’t matter.
None of it means anything if I’m not right with myself and the people who matter most.

We don’t fix the world by yelling into it.
We fix it by leading ourselves — so others can follow.

So don’t be afraid to disconnect. Don’t be afraid to be uninformed for a while. 

Get right with yourself so you can impact your world. 

As always, thanks for reading.

Kyle

Song of the Week

If I Were the Devil – Colby Acuff

Still the perfect track for this week.
If evil wanted to keep men sedated, soft, distracted, and weak — this is how it would sound.