Now we get to the meat and potatoes portion of this series on how to design your own physique. If you’ve been following along a reading Parts I, II, and III you know the importance of regular physical activity to build a foundation for fitness, you know how to assess your physique and be honest with what you need to work on, and you know how and why to get lean. Now for the fun part – putting on muscle. Full disclosure here – I did not invent the ideas I’m going to discuss in this post. They have been developed literally over thousands of years by athletes, philophers, soldiers, artists and sculptors, physical educators and culturists and now modern bodybuilders. What I can offer you is a frame work from which to base your training and aesthetic goals. Read More
Welcome to the third part in my series on how to design your ideal physique. Originally this post was going to be about exercise selection but it’s going to have to wait because I got so many emails from readers asking for my take on how to get lean. I have a fairly straight forward approach that I’ve never seen not work for a client when it’s actually followed properly. Let’s dive right in.
In the last installment I covered some of the basics for designing your physique and how you should start thinking about how the shape and size of your body will impact your physique. In this installment I’ll cover the first steps you need to take when designing your new physique. Read More
Most guys have the same problem with their physiques as they do with most things in life. They fail to plan. It’s difficult to be successful or even know when you’ve “succeeded” if you don’t have an end-game in mind. I’m not saying that life is about nothing other than an endless list of goals. Quite the opposite in fact. If you’re doing everything right, you should be able to enjoy the journey. Building your physique is no different. This post will cover how to assess your physique and build it into something you can be proud of. Read More
I’ve been ragging on the juice craze that has sprung up lately. And for good reason. While consuming some more fruits and veggies is likely a step in the right direction to improve and maintain your health, juicing just isn’t the panacea that many of it’s supporters wishes it was. Maybe it will help sure up some nutritional deficiencies if you have a generally poor diet to begin with. It probably won’t even hurt you unless you go crazy on the fructose. that being said, we do know that JUICING WILL NOT DETOX you. Okay, fancy-pants-science-guy, you’re probably saying to yourself, then why do I feel so good after drinking fresh, organic fruit and veggie juice? Read More
We are all searching for guidance. Men need mentors to show them the way. No one is born knowing everything and it’s a very prudent move for young men to seek out guidance as soon as possible so that they may reap the rewards that much sooner. It’s normal, healthy and natural to have idols and heroes that can help mold and guide a man through his life. That being said, men, especially lost men, have a tendency to idolize or dare I use the term “pedestalize” certain figures to the point of absurdity or even damage to their own lives.
If you’re like most guys, you’ve probably been at the gym at some point and pointed out another guy to your friend joking about how that guy must be on something. Look at his arms! You don’t get that way unless you’re on roids, bro. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that steroid and other banned substance use is pretty much running rampant these days. Chances are, if that bro looks like he’s on something, he probably is. Then again, it’s possible that he’s not, or even if he is, it’s not as much as you might guess. I’ve come up with an alternative explanation for why some guys seem to be able to push the boundaries of what is achievable naturally when it comes to muscular size and development. Read More
That’s what you look like.
If you’re a man who is interested in self-improvement you know that change hurts. Growth is uncomfortable. Introspection is worse. Whether your battles are mental, emotional, social, or physical, chances are if you’re striving to better yourself it’s gonna hurt like hell at some point in your journey. Some men are not cut out for that journey from the get-go, but luckily for them there are ways that you can conserve and strengthen your will power and resolve. Even if you don’t have strong willpower and have no desire to cultivate it, there’s a pretty good workaround for that too. While some men are capable of dealing with the pain associated with personal development, others get their wiring all crossed and start to crave the pain associated with self improvement instead of the improvement itself. This post is for those guys. Read More
As I mentioned in this post about using an inexpensive and safe supplement to help you focus and control anxiety, I have struggled with insomnia for the better part of a decade. If you’ve never experienced it before, Ed Norton in Fight Club does a pretty decent job of explaining what it feels like. You kind of drag yourself through life, half awake, half asleep, feeling both exhausted and jittery at the same time. Often I would find it extremely easy to pass out sitting up in class but when it came time to actually get a good night’s sleep I’d lie awake for hours on end staring at the ceiling. Being the science nerd that I am, I started doing research.
Yeah the jaw clenching, rapid heart rate, I’m freaking out on the inside kind of anxiety.
For most of my life I’ve suffered from mild to moderate anxiety. It might have been from growing up in a house of yellers, or it just might be wired into my genetic code but for as long as I can remember I’ve been “on edge”. This isn’t always a bad thing, mind you. It allows me to get more work done, be more enthusiastic (manic?) about projects I’m interested in and has been a great source of motivation to get to the gym and burn off some of that excess “buzz”.
The down sides: chronic insomnia in high school through college (I figured out how to beat it – posts coming soon), a propensity towards irritability and frustration when others aren’t moving as fast as I am, and honestly, it’s exhausting being this keyed up all the time. That’s why I’m happy I discovered this safe, inexpensive supplement that has all but eliminated my jaw clenching on my morning commute and has made my day-t0-day life a lot more pleasant. Read More