As we scaled, I stopped looking after my health

I treated my health like it could wait. It couldn't.

The busier things got, the less of me was left to run them. Fresh funding, a growing team, more momentum, more meetings, more balls in the air than I had ever had to juggle – and I was running on empty through all of it.

The first thing I cut

Rest was the first thing to go. Less sleep. No more exercise. The doctor's appointment pushed to "after this stretch." I told myself it was temporary: just get through this one push, and I would catch up on all of it later.

Your body keeps track

Your body keeps track, even when you don't. Tiredness doesn't reset overnight; it stacks up. And the sharp thinking your job actually depends on runs on sleep, food and movement. Adrenaline can fake it for a while, but never for long.

Things don't slow back down, either. The next round, the next hire, the next challenge simply arrives. And the bill comes due anyway – in your energy, in your health markers, and in the version of yourself you didn't notice slipping away.

I kept running like this until my body made the decision for me. That is a story for another article (anyone following Bianca Gfrei might already guess the topic).

What I tell founders today

Your body isn't a reward you collect once things settle. It is the engine you are running the whole climb on. Protect it during the climb, not after it.