Hello and welcome to a weekend episode of Daily English — where we try to grow, in English and in life. Before I start, I wanna remind you that tomorrow, Sunday at 12 p.m New York time, we have a free speaking club open to all of you. It would be wonderful to meet you and practice spoken English. For your comfort, I’ve put the link to the class in the description. Just click on it and enter the lesson!
Today, I want to talk about grit — not the loud kind, but the quiet, trainable kind.
And I want to use one very simple example: the plank.
When you hold a plank, something interesting happens.Your body is working.
But very quickly, it’s your mind that wants to stop.
There’s no emergency. No danger. Just discomfort.
And your brain says: “That’s enough.”
Here’s where the science comes in.
There’s a substance in your brain called BDNF — you can think of it as brain fertilizer.
BDNF helps your brain: adapt to stress, build resilience, and learn that discomfort is survivable.
And BDNF increases when you stay with focused, controlled effort. Science has proved that exercises that need focus as like plank and yoga help a lot with increasing BDNF.
When you hold the plank just a little longer — not to punish yourself, but to stay present —
Your brain learns something powerful: “This is uncomfortable… but I can handle it.”That lesson doesn’t stay on the mat. It shows up later: when work gets hard, when motivation drops, when you want to quit early in any aspect of your life.
That’s grit. Not forcing. Not pushing. Staying. So this weekend, try this:
Hold a plank. When you want to stop, don’t collapse immediately. Stay for one more breath.
Maybe two. Not to be tough. But to teach your brain.
And Let me leave you with this:
Grit isn’t built by being harsh with yourself. It’s built in small moments when you choose to stay.