• Austin Gayne is the founder of SuperX, a superhero and pop culture-inspired gym wear company.
• He works with brands including Marvel to create merchandise based on characters like Spider-Man.
• SuperX bought a lot of materials from China, but pivoted in response to Trump's tariffs.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Austin Gayne, the 29-year-old CEO of the sportswear company, SuperX, who is based in Nashville, Tennessee. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

When people watch movies like "Batman Begins" and see Christian Bale's physique and Bruce Wayne's work ethic, it's like, "Wow, that's kind of inspiring." It makes you want to either start a fitness routine, be a better person, or just get your adrenaline pumping. This is our secret sauce at SuperX.

Although I started SuperX as a supplement company, I pivoted to activewear because nobody was really doing superhero designs. People see the company as a niche clothing brand, or a superhero clothing brand, but I'm transitioning it into a pop culture fitness brand, which understands the connection between customers wanting to feel like these characters.

The reason people connect with them is very character-specific. Let's use Spider-Man as an example. The reason so many people resonate with him beyond his cool powers is that they see Peter Parker.

He's overlooked, doubted, bullied, and below average, but he rises above it. Many fans relate to him, and they feel they can become something more.

So, when we collaborate with Marvel on merch featuring a character, we're really going to tap into that feeling. Everybody wants to be a better person. That's why our slogan is "Be extraordinary."

It's not just, "work out and become jacked." If that's what you choose to be, great! But it could be that you want to run a marathon, rank up in your career, be a better spouse, a better father, a better son, a better friend — whatever it means to you.

Getting permission from brands like Marvel and DC to make merch grew my business — but it's a complex partnership.

Think of huge companies that own massive properties. Disney owns Marvel and Lucasfilm. Warner Bros. owns DC Comics, "Harry Potter," "Mortal Kombat," and "The Lord of the Rings."

These licensers have their own set of guidelines and rules for each brand. So, for example, Disney's rules for Marvel are different to Lucasfilm's for "Star Wars." From my perspective, licensing is very challenging because a third party has to approve your products and marketing, which adds another layer of complexity to your business.

We're trying to master that approval process. Yes, licensing gives you a direct connection to the characters, which is great and comes with certain freedoms. It allows us to use superior details in our designs in unique ways, instead of just slapping a print on a T-shirt.

However, licenses also mean you effectively have a new business partner who makes product and creative-related decisions, which can make the process more complicated than creating things in-house.

And for businesses that are trying to expand, the recent tariffs will make things even harder.

Trump's tariffs will affect smaller businesses, but it's also a learning opportunity.

The moment we heard about the tariff increase, we immediately freaked out because we thought, "We have to adapt to this quickly." For a couple of days, I wasn't optimistic because I've never faced this before. With the margins we have, there was no way that we could continue doing business the way we did.

I immediately started calling different companies in different countries. We found a manufacturer in the USA who could make one of my products, and a handful in other countries, instead of getting all of our supply from one place.

Fortunately, we didn't have any shipments in the water when the tariffs were announced. I have immense sympathy for anyone who did, because if you had a shipment on a boat and it landed, you would be screwed. You would have to pay that amount, or you would just dock it and have to figure it out.

These tariffs are changing on a near-daily, if not weekly, basis. We just don't know how long they're going to be in place. They're going to ruin hundreds of thousands of middle to small-tier businesses because there isn't enough time to divest their manufacturing and supply chain from China to different countries.

However, the ones who survive will become better, leaner, more efficient, more tactical, and wiser operators.

It's kind of like Charles Darwin's theory. It's not the smartest or the strongest who are going to survive, but it's those who are most adaptable. I'm not the smartest or the strongest, but I'm definitely one of the most adaptable. You just say, "Hey, I'm going to figure it out. I'm going to lace up my boots. We'll figure this out, and eventually this too shall pass. When it does, I'm going to be better for it."

No amount of business books will teach you how to become an efficient operator. There's no amount of podcasts you can listen to figure out how to avoid all the mistakes.

I use these types of situations to offer encouragement to people in my situation. You have to think: "Okay, if I can get through this and make it on the other side, I should be wiser, more disciplined, and ultimately have a better and healthier business."

Essentially, our approach to navigating the tariffs all comes down to "Be extraordinary," which forces us to be innovative disruptors.

• Leah Wei avoided the gym because she felt exercise was just about achieving a certain body type.
• She realized she was missing out on health benefits, so worked on her relationship with exercise.
• Wei now sees moving daily as an opportunity to have fun and see her friends.

When Leah Wei, a 27-year-old YouTuber based in New York, learned that the body naturally starts to lose muscle mass at age 30, she knew she had to get over her fear of working out.

She had sworn off the gym years before because she had negative associations with exercise, she told Business Insider. These came from growing up seeing images of Victoria's Secret models and magazine covers emblazoned with phrases like "get abs quick."

It felt like exercise was about pushing yourself to look a certain way, Wei said. When she didn't see the aesthetic results fitness influencers promised, it left her feeling bad about her body.

To preserve her self-esteem, Wei decided to abandon exercise and accept her body as it was. "I didn't want to have that relationship with my body, with movement," she said.

But as time went on, she realized that she was missing out on the health benefits of exercise. Her neck and shoulders felt tight from sitting at a screen all day, she felt lethargic in the colder months, and became aware maintaining muscle as you age was important for staying strong and mobile.

In January 2023, Wei decided it was time to give working out another go. But this time she wanted it to be sustainable, and to prioritize how it made her feel, not how it made her look.

Now, she exercises every day, either going to a class or hitting the gym, because she genuinely enjoys it. She shared three ways she makes working out a joy.

1) Reframing 'exercise' as 'movement'

Wei likes to think about exercise as an opportunity to move her body, get away from her laptop, and have fun.

"It's a rebrand to this is just a really fun part of your day and something I love to do," she said.

Rather than having a strict routine or schedule, she decides what kind of movement she'll do each day based on her mood. She's a member of a rock climbing gym that offers a wide range of classes— from classic to aerial yoga and circus skills— and often tries new activities.

Wei likened her new attitude toward working out to going to a playground as a child. "You're never like 'oh I have to go outside to play for recess because it improves my sleep, or increases my metabolism. You're kind of just there because it's fun,'" she said.

Wei also has a gym in her building, where she aims to strength train twice a week with free weights.

2) Marrying movement with socializing

Exercising with a friend makes it even more fun, Wei said, and it helps her to balance different parts of her life.

She convinced three of her friends to join her rock climbing gym and they typically go together at least once a week or bump into each other there. "I think if your friends are all going climbing, it's more motivating for you too," she said.

And it means she gets to exercise and see the people she loves at the same time.

"I'll hit up friends and be like, 'do you wanna go Friday night or Sunday or Saturday morning' and people are usually down," she said.

3) Join a gym you want to spend time in every day

Wei's gym has big windows and a pretty view, which she said has helped her build the habit of going almost daily as it's a space she likes to spend time in.

"If I invest in a space that I think is really welcoming and warm, it makes me want to go there every day," she said.

Studios like this tend to be more expensive than a basic gym, but Wei is happy to spend her money this way.

"I don't care as much about makeup or clothing or purses or whatever but I'm like, this is really worth it for me," she said.

• Alan Ritchson plays the titular character in Prime Video's "Reacher" series.
• The actor is known for his sculpted muscular look in the show.
• He told Business Insider that corned beef and pushps are key to his physique.

Watching Alan Ritchson in "Reacher," it's hard not to notice that he is extremely ripped.

In the show that just launched its third season on Prime Video, Ritchson plays a former military investigator whose intimidating size and strength are handy for fighting off hordes of bad guys.

When Business Insider asked Ritchson how he built his hulking physique, and his arms in particular, he said, half-joking: "you gotta eat constantly. You have to eat every five to 10 minutes. A lot of pizza, a lot of cookies, and millions of pushups."

Maria Sten, who plays Frances Neagley in "Reacher," added: "A lot of canned beef!"

"That's right!" Ritchson said. "The corned beef and hash! She knows, she's got the secret. That's the juice. Corned beef and hash and eggs, baby. Puts a little hair on your chest. And some pull-ups."

Last year, the actor told Men's Health that he aims to eat 4,000 calories a day and do five 30-minute workouts a week, usually involving cable exercises that focus on his upper body.

Here's how to apply Ritchson's recommendations if you also want to be shredded.

You need extra calories to build muscle

Eating cookies to get ripped may sound counterintuitive, but a calorie surplus, or eating more energy than you burn, is optimal for building muscle.

But the more you eat, the more fat you're likely to gain. That's why bodybuilders typically "bulk" — or gain mass — for a few months, before "shredding" or "cutting" to lose fat and reveal the muscle.

It's notoriously hard to lose fat and build muscle at the same time because they have opposing calorie requirements. Plus, it's easier to do when you're new to lifting.

To build muscle while gaining as little fat as possible, personal trainers and sports dietitians generally recommend eating around or just over your maintenance calories.

And while pizza and cookies provide a lot of energy from fats and carbs, corned beef hash with eggs will be more satisfying — and help you hit your nutritional goals without eating lots of calories — because it's high in protein.

"You can do all the weight training you want, but if you don't give your body the right building blocks to build new muscle, your results will be suboptimal," sports nutritionist Mike Molloy previously told BI. "With that in mind, I would recommend consuming somewhere between 1.6 and 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight."

Protein is essential for building muscle, but most dietitians agree it's also important to eat a balanced diet with carbs and fats for energy.

Lift progressively heavier weights to gain muscle

As for Ritchson's recommendation of push-ups for Reacher-size arms, they can certainly be part of the puzzle. Push-ups, and pull-ups, work the core. Push-ups and pull-ups also work the chest and back, respectively. Rows, lateral raises, bicep curls, and tricep extensions will also help you sculpt your arms, bodybuilding coach Cliff Wilson previously told BI.

Overall, you need to train hard to build muscle. Lift heavy weights that you find challenging (mostly in sets of eight to 12 reps). Try to gradually increase the reps and/or weight, a process called progressive overload.

Building muscle also requires enough rest and recovery time: It's between training sessions that your muscles repair and rebuild stronger — and bigger.

• In 2024, I decided to start boxing three times a week as my full-body workout.
• I noticed my sleep patterns improved after consistently taking classes.
• I left each session with a positive mindset, feeling refreshed and ready for the day.

I first started boxing in 2013 when I wanted to add a new form of cardio to my workouts at the gym. However, life got in the way, and I lost consistency for a few years.

Last year, I wanted to get back into a fitness routine — not only for my health as I entered my mid-30s but also to overcome new physical challenges and rebuild my self-esteem, confidence, and resilience.

So, in 2024, I started taking boxing classes three times a week at my local gym.

After I started boxing, I noticed I was sleeping better

Before I started consistently attending boxing sessions, I'd often stay up past 1 a.m. working or scrolling through social media — only to wake up feeling exhausted the next day.

Soon after starting my classes, though, I settled into a much stricter routine. I stopped working at 6 p.m. and got seven to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep.

The consistent high-intensity exercise helped me feel like I was finally able to unwind and enjoy a good night's sleep.

Turns out, this is backed by science. According to Dr. Julia Iafrate, who specializes in sports and physical medicine and rehabilitation, exercising at least 75 minutes a week — the recommended amount of vigorous-intensity activity from the US Department of Health and Human Services — can improve sleep quality because it releases feel-good endorphins.

Because I was sleeping better and attending my sessions, boxing also helped me stay in a consistent routine on my days off. Rather than sleeping all day or spending the weekend feeling unmotivated, I felt refreshed and well-rested.

Boxing taught me effective self-defense techniques and made me feel more confident

As a woman living in New York City, staying safe is my top priority. I knew boxing could be a powerful tool for learning self-defense techniques and essential skills beyond physical strength.

Throughout my classes, I learned techniques for efficient blocks, evading strategies, and counterstrikes. Each time I left a session, I felt more confident I could protect myself if I was ever in a dangerous situation. In general, this helped me feel safer while out and about.

Boxing seemed to improve my physical health and mindset

When we weren't practicing punches, my boxing classes incorporated a few traditional exercises I'd seen at HIIT classes, such as squats, push-ups, and burpees. It felt good — and even a bit exciting — to work every part of my body.

Outside physical results, I noticed the exercise positively impacted my mental health as well. I left each class feeling calmer and ready to conquer my day.

I'm glad I got back into boxing and would recommend it to anyone wanting to try a new workout

Although I no longer box three times a week, the exercise helped me fall back in love with the sport and motivated me to move my body.

The classes were also much more fun than cardio on a treadmill or Stairmaster, as each session involved a slightly different workout.

Taking boxing classes was completely worth it, and I now feel more confident about working out than ever.

• Body recomposition is the process of losing fat while gaining muscle at the same time.
• After a body composition analysis, I worked with a trainer to find exercises to reach my goals.
• I should focus on adding weight and doing shorter, more challenging cardio.

To ring in the new year, I booked a body composition analysis at the athletic club Life Time.

After I got a scan of my muscle mass and body fat, a personal trainer walked me through the results: for optimal health, I needed to lose body fat and gain more muscle.

My main takeaway is that changing my diet is key. I'll get the best results if I maintain a calorie deficit, prioritize whole foods and lots of protein, and drink more water.

The trainer also said that I could update my current workout routine (a mix of cardio and strength training) to be more challenging. He walked me through a personal training session and showed me the exercises I needed to recompose my body.

Focus on strength training

Strength training is the best way to build muscle and burn fat. Because my body composition analysis showed that my legs are generally stronger than my arms, I asked if we could focus more on upper-body exercises.

To strengthen my upper body, I learned how to use machines for pull-ups, rows, and rope pulls.

I also worked on improving my chest press form. My trainer had me hold the barbell in position before I started doing reps so that I could make sure the correct muscles were activated. Otherwise, I won't see much progress and could hurt myself.

His main takeaway was that I should keep track of how much I lift and make sure I'm increasing weight.

He recommended starting with a lighter weight (and higher rep count), slowly increasing my weight, and decreasing my reps as needed per exercise.

That way, I can ensure that I'm progressively overloading and building up muscles rather than plateauing. In addition to the classes I take, I plan to work on upper- and lower-body workouts on my own as well.

Improving my core strength

Pretty much every weightlifting exercise I do involves "activating my core" so that I can stay balanced and secure throughout. My trainer said I should also include core exercises to help support my strength training goals: whether I'm doing a deadlift or a chest press, a strong core is necessary to do them right. Otherwise, I won't see many gains.

One I learned was lying on a box with my head and legs elevated while my back was flat. Holding positions like this for 30 seconds or a minute will gradually increase my core strength.

Try shorter cardio sessions

While I regularly run throughout the week, my trainer said that if I'm not challenging myself and keeping my heart rate up, I'm not actually burning much fat.

Rather than focusing on longer-distance runs where I go at a leisurely pace, he recommended doing shorter, 30-minute cardio sessions at the fastest pace I can tolerate.

Bulking and cutting at the same time is notoriously hard. There's a reason athletes typically focus on either gaining muscle or losing fat at one time. While I'm more focused on cutting, I'm hoping an emphasis on strength training and quicker cardio can help me hit my goals.

• RFK Jr. was spotted wearing jeans and hiking boots in one of America's most exclusive gyms.
• His unusual workout gear reflects the contradictory nature of his persona and views, historians said.
• Showcasing his fitness at 70 helps to signal that his controversial views on health are legitimate.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants you to know that he's healthy, rugged, and has an Equinox membership.

Donald Trump's pick for secretary of Health and Human Services was spotted working out at the elite gym in Manhattan's swanky Hudson Yards wearing jeans and hiking boots, Page Six reported Sunday.

The 60,000-square-foot fitness complex contains both a saltwater lap pool and a heated outdoor pool, a sundeck, a restaurant, Pilates studios, and saunas. Membership costs $405 a month.

We can't know for sure why Kennedy chose that outfit, but consciously or not, it sends a certain message. The combination of denim and sturdy outdoor footwear against the backdrop of a luxury gym encapsulates his "insider-outsider vibe," which helps him to appeal to his varied audience, historians told Business Insider.

Many find it curious that Kennedy is aligned with discredited causes such as the link between the MMR vaccine and autism, while his assessment of certain health issues, such as the link between chronic disease and ultra-processed foods, seems sound. His gym clothing reflects this dichotomy.

Since the COVID pandemic, groups of people with seemingly opposing political stances have converged in unexpected ways. This includes libertarian conspiracy theorists, "crunchy" moms, and "manosphere" figures like Joe Rogan, whose views on some healthcare issues now align, Peter Knight, a professor of American Studies at the University of Manchester, in the UK, said. Kennedy, who is against fluoridated water, has promoted anti-vaccine conspiracy theories, and believes the Food and Drug Administration undermines public health, taps into all of these audiences, he said.

"This is the world that he's been moving in for a long time, and a lot of it is not preplanned, but there is an awareness of appealing to these different kinds of groups that have really come together since the pandemic," Knight said.

The 70-year-old is signaling that his brand of wellness works

Earlier this month, the swole 70-year-old shared a video in which he wore the same jeans-and-boot combo but was shirtless and flexing his muscles in an iconic body-building gym in Venice, California.

Promoting exercise — and showing off his own personal strength — is "absolutely" part of his political identity, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, a history professor at The New School in New York City, said. It implicitly signals "the efficacy of his own unconventional ideas about health."

Other politicians, including Teddy Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Jimmy Carter, used their personal exercise routines to convey their fitness for office, Mehlman Petrzela said.

"But in doing so at the age of 70, and so clearly to show off his looks as much as his health, he is almost painting himself as superhuman, able to transcend the traditional rules of aging," she said of Kennedy.

Sonya Abrego, a design historian specializing in the history of American fashion and an assistant professor at the Parsons School of Design, said the image of Kennedy working out shirtless was reminiscent of a 1980s or '90s action-movie hero.

"Like someone who just sprung into action, ripped off a shirt, and started lifting weights," Abrego said. "I mean, obviously it's showing off the way his body looks as an older person and promoting his ideas about health and diet."

The outfit evokes traditional, rural American masculinity

While jeans are ubiquitous today, they were historically worn by blue-collar workers and they're reminiscent of the American West when worn with cowboy boots and hats, Abrego said.

For someone of Kennedy's generation, jeans and cowboy boots could still be associated with "the kind of rugged masculinity" they exude, she said: "Something of an outlier, something a little bit rebellious, especially someone coming from an elite background that he comes from."

"He's rich and cool and aspirational enough to have access to elite circles, but still sufficiently a man of the people such that he seems out of place there," Mehlman Petrzela said of Kennedy's Equinox visit.

The choice to wear jeans could be read as him positioning himself as "more of an everyman" or possibly a nod to a more rural, traditional American masculinity, Abrego said. The hiking boots also signal his connection to the outdoors and environmental causes.

"He often just dresses like a typical politician in a suit," Mehlman Petrzela said. "So it does feel like an intentional break from how he presents publicly. It also sort of tracks with his unusual and often kind of inconsistent persona and ideals."

• Journaling is now part of a regular wellness routine for many male fitness and "hustle" influencers.
• Instagram influencers who talk about the gym, cold plunges, and the "hustle" also talk about journaling.
• This is probably a good thing.

The best-selling kids' book "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" opens with the titular wimp Greg Heffley emphasizing that he's writing a journal, not a diary. (Even though the notebook his mother bought him says "Diary" right on the front.)

You see, for fictional middle schoolers like Heffley, keeping a diary is considered the realm of teenage girls. (The series has some questionable notions about gender equity.)

But journaling has been going mainstream as part of a daily wellness routine that prioritizes mental health. And one surprising group in particular is taking it very seriously: the hustle bros on Instagram.

I suspect you already recognize the hustle bro genre, but I'll attempt to describe it in case you're not familiar: They're male social media creators who post about workout routines and life hacks, and they're often bodybuilders or extremely fit. They might be focused on financial goals, although the sources of their own flaunted wealth might be obscure (it seems in some cases that they got rich by selling online courses about how to get rich).

They exist somewhere within the broader world of the online manosphere but focus inward on the male self and "mindset" rather than the more explicitly toxic corners that focus outwardly on men's place in society.

Don't call it self-help, call it self-optimization

Journaling has become so mainstream that in 2022, Apple added a Journal app to its default suite of apps baked into the iPhone, prompting people to do a daily reflection as part of its ever-expanding health features.

The mainstream king of all this kind of stuff is Andrew Huberman, the musclebound neuroscientist with an incredibly popular podcast that has popularized all sorts of specific health advice on things like sleep and avoiding alcohol.

Huberman did an hourlong podcast about a "protocol" for journaling, which he said he based on academic research into the benefits of a specific journaling exercise where you write about your most traumatic moment for 15 to 30 minutes a week.

Most of the hustle bros I've seen talking about journaling don't describe a specific journaling method. It's not clear if they want men to reflect on their day, do something more like "The Artist's Way" of "Morning Pages" (a stream-of-consciousness three pages first thing in the morning as a form of creativity), or something more like Huberman's protocol.

Thomas Procopovich is a personal development and sales coach with almost 30,000 followers on Instagram. He's affiliated with Andy Elliott, a sales coach with 2.5 million followers whose content urges men to be physically fit to improve their sales technique.

Procopovich told me that he's been journaling for two years. He's made content about the importance of journaling and mindset. "Men need to be able to write down their thoughts more and see how much they have grown," he told me.

Vinny Brusco, a life coach and host of "The Council of Dudes Podcast," talks often about mental wellness and masculinity. "I think we are seeing a major shift in what mental health looks like in general, especially for men," he told Business Insider.

"It is becoming more and more acceptable for men to be vulnerable and expressive with their feelings. Guys are using different yet old modalities when it comes to mental health. It's almost like we are going back to our roots in some way, with things like cold plunges, saunas, meditating, and even journaling."

This is a group of men who are generally interested in improving themselves in very traditionally masculine ways (getting huge muscles, earning money).

And they're increasingly seeing mental health as part of that improvement. Journaling seems like the perfect vehicle for that.