End-of-school-year chaos. Work deadlines piling up. Summer plans that somehow need figuring out even though summer is still a month away. Right now your stress is a pot on the stove and the lid is rattling.

You don’t need a meditation app for this. You need to move. I’m not being dismissive of meditation — I meditate. But when your stress is at a 9 out of 10, sitting quietly with your thoughts is like trying to have a calm conversation in a house fire. Move first. Breathe later.

Exercise is the fastest cortisol flush that exists. Twenty minutes of the right kind of movement does more for your stress than an hour of trying to “breathe through it.”

Step 1: Body — The 20-Minute Dad OS Stress Circuit.

Set a timer. Rotate through these 5 movements — 45 seconds on, 15 seconds rest. 4 rounds:• Pushups• Bodyweight squats• Alternating lunges• Plank hold• Burpees (or mountain climbers if burpees feel like punishment)

No equipment. No gym. Do it in your garage, your living room, your backyard while the kids are eating breakfast. The whole thing takes less time than an episode of whatever your kids are watching on the iPad.

Step 2: Fuel — Skip the energy drink. Eat a banana and a protein shake 30 minutes before.

Pre-workout supplements are a $15 billion industry built mostly on the fact that guys are just dehydrated and underfed. A banana gives you fast carbs. A scoop of whey protein gives you 25+ grams of protein to repair your muscles. Together that’s a better pre-workout than anything sold in a neon can, and it costs about 50 cents.

Step 3: Mind — Do NOT check your phone for 10 minutes after.

I know. I know. But hear me out. Your body just flushed a bunch of cortisol and released endorphins. If you immediately check email you’re re-spiking those stress hormones right back to where they were. It’s like washing your car and then driving it straight through a mud puddle. Sit with the calm for 10 minutes. Drink some water. Stare at a wall. You earned this window.

The takeaway:

Stress isn’t something you think your way out of. It’s something you move your way out of. Twenty minutes. No gear. No excuses.

Forward this to the most stressed dad you know. He’s 20 minutes from feeling human again.

Rootin’ for ya,

Jason from Dad OS