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The title of this post is “Fit Dad Fat Dad” partially in honor of Rich Dad Poor Dad and partially to stir up some controversy in exactly the same way as RDPD does.

RDPD has a fairly poor reputation amongst pf bloggers. I think the reason is that it questions widely held beliefs on personal finance. The aim of RDPD is to get the reader to stop thinking like a middle class person and start thinking like a capitalist or an investor. This is about as hard as convincing a democrat to become a republican or vice-a-versa. Many readers completely miss this point and instead complain why RDPD does not contain lists of baby steps towards getting out of debt or big lists of 100 ways to save money out of which they can pick a handful and believe they are on their way to financial health. That is to say the complaint is that the book does not show how to become rich while thinking like a poor person.

Fit Dad Fat Dad follows the same prescription. I remember a dinner once where the conversation fell on the subject of calories. I was pointing out various parts of the meal explaining that the lettuce and vegetables were around 40-80kcal/100g while the dressing was around 600 and the bread was around 300, etc. Then one of the 220lbs guys commented that it was funny that I was the one knowing this when I was exactly the one who did not need to know this. This is similar to how people in shape are told that since they are so fit they don’t need to exercise. Of course the fact that in shape people exercise is exactly the reason why they don’t need to.
If I wrote a book I would have my fat dad personify the attitude that one loses weight by counting calories and taking small steps by cutting out the weekly ice cream while my “fit dad” would personify the attitude that eating the wrong kinds of food (taking on caloric debt) is simply bad for you. Since “fit dad” would know the true value of food, “fit dad” would subconsciously choose to eat healthy and in moderation. “Fat dad” would tend to value food according to what tastes good. Now counting calories works, but it is unlikely to work well until “fat dad” understands why he is counting calories, namely to see what is nutritious and what is detrimental. Similarly setting up a budget is not the end but only a means of understanding how some cash flows are good and some cash flows are bad.

When it comes to exercising fat dad sees the ripped abs and bulging biceps whereas fit dad sees the ability to do 200 situps or 30 pull ups. Fat dad sees exercise as a chore or at least something to be endured to reach his end goals of looking good. Fit dad sees exercise as a way of testing his limits and being physically capable. Looking good without a shirt on is merely a side-effect. Fat dads would stop exercising as soon as they have reached their goal of looking good. Fit dads would keep pushing. Hence, machines for easy abs in just 10 minutes and liposuction are for fat dads. Fat dads drive to the gym a couple of times a week and exercise for a bit on a recumbent while reading a magazine. The financial equivalent of fat dad is setting up automatic contributions to a 401k, forgetting about it, and going through the motions. The financial equivalent of fit dad is a focused search for high ROI opportunities whether they are found in the stock market, through cheaper insurance, or down at the supermarket.