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Why We Lose Our Results

Today I want to share with you the biggest mistakes that I see people make who start the journey to better themselves in fitness, relationships, business, or overall happiness. It’s a trap that I’ve fallen into many times myself and I can guarantee you have too.

The reason I can guarantee you’ve made this mistake is because every single person struggles with this unless you become conscious of the pattern and make an effort to break it. Even after I was taught this pattern I STILL fell into it and it applies to anything in life – so I suggest paying close attention.

The trap that I fell into is something Brandon Broadwater calls the “Pride Cycle.”

Here’s are the four stages of the price cycle:

Growth: You’re studying and (more importantly) practicing and applying new skills. Maybe you’re studying how to exercise, eat healthier, or general self-improvement. You could be working with a personal trainer or coach to take things to the next level. Perhaps you’re just working on being a better person all around.
Success and Prosperity: If you stayed in a state of growth and applied what you learn, eventually you have a breakthrough. You’ve finally reached the point of “success.”
Pride: You start to study less, work less hard, and say things like “I know all that already.” Even worse, you may start to feel better and superior to others that you’ve surpassed and feel like they don’t have anything to teach you.
The Fall: Eventually your pride becomes your downfall and you start to lose the fruits you’ve earned. In areas of competition, it could mean seeing your competition blow past you. The pain of loss eventually becomes a wake-up call. It’s at this point you hit rock bottom and realize you have to start growing and learning new things if you want to get back on top. When things get bad enough, you re-enter the growth phase and the cycle starts over.

The thing is, you are always somewhere in the pride cycle. The only way to avoid the fall is to stay in the first two stages, growth and prosperity.

One great method to stay in a state of growth is to ask yourself quality questions like “How can I keep learning?” “How can I create a new challenge for myself to take things even further” “What is it I should be learning that I’m not?”

For more information on staying out of the pride cycle including the one attribute that overcomes pride, you can attend the Answer To Everything Event.

Body Beast Review

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Body Beast – Beachbody’s At Home Muscle Building Workout

Hanging with the Beast himself – Sagi Kalev

Before diving into my review of Body Beast, let me give you a little background about me because you’re probably thinking, “why the hell should I listen to what this guy has to say?”

I’ve been seriously training and doing various bodybuilding, strength, and powerlifting style weight lifting programs for over 10 years by the time I started Body Beast. I’ve done body-part splits, full body routines, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s workouts (super high volume), 5×5, Wendler’s 3/2/1, HSS, many routines from t-nation.com, Ben Pakulski’s MI40, gymnastic bodyweight training, and more.

If there’s one thing a learned from doing all of this, it’s that many things can work. There are also different programs for different goals (duh). So be skeptical of anyone claiming “this is the best routine for everyone!” because there’s a good chance they’re just trying to sell you something or they’re incredibly ignorant of how different people respond to various styles of training.

With that out of the way, you may have heard about Beachbody’s Body Beast developed by Sagi Kalev and are wondering, “is this one of the best workout programs for building muscle, shedding some fat, and just plain looking freakin awesome?”

Read on to find out if this is a good fit for you and your goals or if something else may be better.

Who Is This For? Hint… It’s NOT Just For Men..

Body Beast was originally marketed as Beachbody’s bodybuilding program that you can do at home. That means it’s mostly aimed at the average guy that wanted to get jacked, ripped, swole or whatever other “bro” term you want to use for dude’s wanting to add more muscle and shed enough fat to get a six pack.

What ended up happening though is that thousands of women fell in love with the routine. Finally they were seeing the benefits of intense weight lifting, being able to eat more without gaining fat, and looking seriously sexy in a way that traditional workout routines weren’t delivering. If you’re a woman interested in Body Beast, I can tell you there’s a HUGE community on Facebook dedicated entirely to women doing this program where they cheer each other on, offer tips, and form virtual friendships.

It also provides a way for women (and men) who may have been intimidated by going to the gym to learn how to lift properly in the comfort of their own home. That being said, this is one of the only routines offered by Beachbody that easily lends itself to doing it in the gym. That’s how I did it. I watched the DVDs to learn the workouts, then printed out the worksheets they provide to bring to the gym.

The workouts are done six days a week, and typically last around 45 minutes. If you’re working out at home, then you save the drive to and from the gym which makes this reasonable for many people.

Finally, if you’ve NEVER done any type of weight lifting, that’s OK. The workouts are designed to ease you into the routine. Don’t rush and take your time. Both absolute beginners and seasoned pros can do this routine and get great results.

Is This Only For Building Muscle?

Body Beast includes two plans – Lean Beast and Huge Beast. If it’s not obvious, lean beast is for those who are looking to shed fat while maintaining or perhaps adding a bit of muscle. It incorporates the very intense “Beast Cardio.” To be straight up, the cardio is not fun. It’s so brutally intense you will hate your life while doing it, but the results make it worthwhile.

What Equipment Do You Need?

You’ll ideally want some adjustable dumbbells as well as an adjustable bench OR stability ball. I’d recommend a bench if you’re looking to lift heavier. A pull-up bar isn’t required, but I would recommend it. Finally, an EZ barbell can be used for some exercises in place of dumbbells.

Alternatively, you can print out worksheets and do the workouts at a gym which is what I do.

What Kind Of Results Did You Get?

Some of the results I got on Body Beast were:

Adding 5 pounds, 1/4 inch to my arms, and 1 inch to my chest in the first 30 days
Adding a few more pounds in the second month (don’t have my measurement info)
Placing top 10 (out of 50 or so competitors) in a physique competition at the end of the three month cycle

Putting on almost 10 pounds through the 90 day program would be great results for anyone, but I was most impressed because I started out with a decent amount of muscle to begin with. A newbie can easily add size when starting something new, but I was coming from a place of regular lifting and training already.

Who WON’T Get Results With This?

While Body Beast is a proven system for delivering incredible results for transforming both men’s and women’s bodies, it’s not going to work if you don’t work it.

The first type of people who won’t get results are those who take it easy the whole time and don’t progress by continually challenging themselves.

The second situation in which people won’t see results is they don’t stay committed to the program. This typically happens because they lack accountability in the form of a coach or group support. This is why I offer FREE coaching for anyone that purchases a Body Beast challenge pack through me. Simply contact me at info@excuseproof.com for more details about making me your free Beachbody/Body Beast coach.

Final Thoughts

I am not responsible for blindness caused by my overwhelming whiteness 🙂

Body Beast is a great routine for:

Men and women wanting to look ~~good~~ great
Those who can carve out 30-45 minutes six days a week to exercise
Those who want a plan that is versatile for both fat loss and muscle gain
Those who like challenges and are tired of wimpy workouts that don’t deliver noticeable changes very quickly
Beginners who are looking to get into weight lifting as well as experienced lifters who want a new stimulus

One final note, this is a routine aimed at building muscle more than strength. However, despite not doing barbell bench pressing at all for over 3 months, by adding in some bodyweight strength training to my Body Beast routine, I ended up barbell bench pressing an easy 315 after finishing Body Beast.

If you’d like some of my best tips for maintaining or gaining strength in addition to size on Body Beast, shoot me a message.

How Do I Get Started Now On Body Beast?

Get the Body Beast challenge pack, which includes Shakeology to replace one meal a day, the DVDs, and FREE fitness coaching from me here: http://excuseproof.com/bodybeastchallenge

If you just want the DVDs by themselves, you can get them here: http://excuseproof.com/bodybeast

Questions?

Hit me up with your questions about Body Beast or this Body Beast review in the comments below, shoot me an email at info@excuseproof.com, or hit me up on Facebook here and I’ll be happy to help.

The Healthiest Breakfast Ever

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What Makes Something Healthy?

I’m going to share with you my ultimate breakfast recipe.

My definition of healthy includes:

1. It’s easy – if you won’t do it nothing else matters

2. It’s based on whole foods and super foods

3. It covers my main macronutrient (protein, carbohydrate, fat) needs and micronutrient needs.

Since this is a shake that only takes a few seconds to make, it meets the first requirement. To understand the second and third aspect, let’s take a quick look at superfoods and why you should be including them in your diet.

Why Superfoods Kick Ass

There was a point in time where vitamin supplements were all the rage. Just pop a few pills and then you don’t have to worry about eating a bunch of broccoli to get your nutritional needs met.

The problem with this approach is that research has shown whole foods have health benefits far and above just their vitamin and mineral content. We simply don’t understand all the various co-factors that are present in food which help vitamins and minerals do their job.

That’s not to say multivitamins aren’t beneficial, it’s just that they won’t ever match the power of real foods.

Things get really exciting however when we get into the level of superfoods. These nutritional powerhouses can radically improve your health and restore deficiencies in ways ordinary vitamin and mineral supplements can’t match.

Herbs like the various adaptogens such as ashwagandha, tulsi, resihi, and more have profound health effects such as:

Modulating the immune system so it can be strong enough to fight infection without overreacting to things like allergies
Preventing cancer and other diseases
Balancing hormones naturally including reducing excess cortisol
Reducing inflammation
Providing balance to the body’s systems by raising what is too low and lowering what is too high

More Superfoods = Less Cravings

The biggest benefit of increasing your intake of superfoods and superherbs is that once you restore balance and nutrition to your body, you’ll likely notice a significant decrease in junk food cravings.

For people suffering from constant cravings, this alone can be a life saver. Many people report weight loss as an indirect effect of increasing their superfood intake.

My Ultimate Breakfast Recipe

1 scoop of superfood formula (I use Shakeology) – Provides whole food nutrition, adaptogenic herbs, digestive enzymes, probiotics, and more) Learn more here.
1 tablespoon of coconut oil – Provides healthy fats, helps increase metabolism, good source of calories
2 servings of fruit such as mixed berries
1 scoop of protein powder – Provides additional protein

What you’ll notice about this is that it’s deceptively simple. While I LOVE juicing and will always encourage people to juice fresh fruits/veggies if they want to add that to this formula, at the end of the day I often go with what’s most convenient.

This breakfast will cost you about $5 which is significantly less than what you’d pay to eat out and get the same level of nutrition. For those on a budget, this may be a stretch, but it’s often easy to work out when you factor the money you save by eating less junk.

Where To Get The Ingredients

Order your Shakeology here.
Coconut oil can be found here. Note: Trader Joe’s has the best deal on coconut oil if you have one locally.
I recommend either a whey protein and/or hemp protein (vegan).

Only have 25 minutes to workout? Do this!

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Too Busy To Exercise?

When I first started Excuse Proof Fitness, I surveyed a group of people to see what their biggest challenge was to getting in and staying in shape. It probably won’t come as a surprise that the thing that came up the most was not enough time.

The first hurdle to overcome here is recognizing that you’ll never “have” time since it’s intangible. Instead, you manage what you do with your activities. You ALWAYS find time for what’s important to you. If getting a drop dead sexy body matters enough, you’re going to find the time.

The issue is that most people think getting ripped means spending 45+ minutes on a treadmill in addition to resistance training. This is the slow, boring, and downright less effective way to do things. With the right routine, you only need 25 minutes a day and you’ll see dramatic transformations in a matter of weeks.

25 Minute Workouts

The most popular 25 minute workout routine is Focus T-25 which is run by Shaun T, the trainer in Insanity. I just did one of these workouts the other day and it’s no joke. There’s very little rest between exercises, but the movements vary enough that it’s not overwhelming.

The pros of this workout is that you can get incredible results in only 25 minutes a day. The downside is that some of the moves require more coordination and it will take a little getting used to. Shaun tends to incorporate more rhythmic elements in his routines which, even for coordinated people like myself, have a learning curve.

Watch the video to learn more:

Getting Started

To get started on Focus T-25, you have two options which both include complementary coaching and group support from myself as I’m a Beachbody coach.

The first is to get the workout program and get your breakfast included for 30 days with Shakeology, the ultimate superfood shake which is what I take daily. I recommend this because not only will you get a greater discount, but I’ll offer personal one on one email coaching for anyone that orders here.

Order T-25 With Shakeology and get a personal coaching session and free book from me. ON SALE UNTIL MAY 1st.

Another option for those who don’t want to take advantage of the special deal and health benefits of a superfood shake is to get the program by itself here.

Order T-25 Workout Program Only

If you have any questions, you may contact me at info@excuseproof.com

Mini Habits For Major Results

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The Best Strategy Ever For Sticking To It?

Today I want to share with you the most stupid simple strategy for reaching your goals and developing habits I have ever come across.

Without implementing this approach, what tends to happen is people follow through on their resolutions when their motivation is high, but fall back into old routines when their motivation is low.

When you apply this approach however, it’s virtually IMPOSSIBLE to fail at what you set out to do. People are reporting finally being able to make breakthroughs in turning things like exercise and healthy eating into lifelong habits.

This approach is using something Stephen Guise of Deep Existence calls Mini Habits.

What Are Mini Habits?

It’s the same basic idea that I recommend in my books of limiting yourself to 1-2 small, easily achievable goals you follow through with everyday until it becomes a habit, and then adding more over time.

Stephen takes this idea to a whole new level however based on the research in the areas of willpower and ego-depletion. All you need to know for now is that mini-habits rely on willpower instead of motivation, and therefore you don’t have to “feel like” doing them to actually follow through. This is because they’re so easy, it’s almost harder not to do them.

Here’s what a “mini-habit” would look like.

1. Do one pushup a day

2. Read 2 pages of a book a day

3. Do 30 seconds of meditation a day (one of my mini habits)

How Do Small Habits Lead To Big Results?

These are things so small, you pretty much can’t fail to do them. But the genius thing is that once you get started, you’ll likely go WAY past your goal.

If you do a single pushup for instance, the majority of the time you’ll think “what the hell, I might as well do a few more!”

If you only stick to doing a single pushup and that’s it, you’re STILL successful, and this feeling of success will give you a sense of satisfaction that keeps you moving forward every single day.

I suggest you read Stephen’s book for a more in-depth explanation on just how powerful this can be.

Who Needs This?

Even though I’m a pretty self-disciplined person, I still have my problems with habit development from time to time. This is because habits can actually take a lot longer than 21-30 days to develop.

There was a period where for a long streak that I was doing meditation for 5-10+ minutes a day. Then some days I would shoot for 15-30 minutes. When that started to feel overwhelming, I gradually fell out of the habit all together.

Fortunately I’ve picked meditation back up by setting myself a mini habit of 30 seconds of daily mediation. And to add to that, I’ve written it down on a sheet of paper that I keep visible so I always remember to do it each day. Even if I’m about to go to sleep I can knock out a 30 second meditation. You just CAN’T fail with this!

How Do You Get Started?

Check out Stephen’s book Mini Habits on Amazon and here’s a great post he did explaining the concept in more detail.

Why new fitness information is usually a waste of time

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As an author, one piece of feedback I occasionally get from people either about my own work (particularly with motivation) or another person’s is that “it isn’t anything new.”

And my response would be something like “do you want to learn something new that doesn’t work, or learn what’s age old and has worked for thousands of years?”

To me, I’d rather go with the time tested and proven approach any day. After all, there’s really nothing new under the sun. Most things written in a fitness book in the last 10 years have probably been known about for at least several generations if not thousands of years.

While it could be said that a characteristic of success is “constant learning,” that’s a little too simplistic. Instead, it’s about HOW people learn that makes or breaks their results.

It’s not only in seeing something new that you learn, but also in seeing something old in a new way.

Most of the time we lose sight of the basics and need to constantly get refocused on the boring things we all know about that lead to results.

Many of the world’s most successful people re-read the same books over and over again. Obviously they’re not getting new information, but they’re still learning because each time they read, they’re coming from a different place.

It’s easy to get caught up in fitness fads and seeking out “shiny new objects” where we want something new and different instead of doing what we already know works.

While learning novel information has its place, I encourage you to take a new look at old things.

Walking for instance isn’t a new and sexy form of exercise, but could you make it exciting by walking and listening to an interesting podcast? Find a walking partner to have conversations with? Walking up hills instead of on the sidewalk or treadmill?

You could also re-read an old book and see if you get new perspective now that you’re a different person reading it than the first time around.

Old and boring is typically old and boring because you’re not making the effort to see things in a new light.

Try seeing everything through “beginner’s eyes” and notice how much more interesting your life becomes.

The Best Fitness Book Ever?

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Get This Book Today!

The Fitness Tips You WISH You Knew

I am super psyched to announce the release of what I consider to be hands down one of the best health and fitness books for the price you’re ever going to find. My new book “50 Fitness Tips You Wish You Knew” has just launched and it reveals cutting edge tips you won’t find anywhere else.

Ok, maybe you can find some of these tips elsewhere. I won’t claim to have “invented” everything I share in this book. But it did take me nine years and thousands of hours of research and personal experimentation to distill down all the various insights of psychology, motivation, herbal remedies, body hacks, exercise tips, healthy eating strategies for broke and busy people, end more into one simple to read guide.

Do You Wish You Knew…

• How to get your best night of sleep ever? Tip #5 reveals something that modern research has just discovered in the past couple years and normalize your circadian rhythms and help you sleep like a baby your first night using it – Hint: It’s NOT a supplement!

• The root source of all of your behaviors? Tip #15 reveals what this is so when you change this, your entire life will change!

• The top 5 supplements you must take for ideal health? Tip #37 reveals the essential nutrients you’re likely missing that can all be replaced for less than the price of a cup of coffee a day!

• What to do if you have almost no time to exercise? Tip #45 reveals how to cut your exercise time down into half while increasing your fat loss and muscle building results!

Get All Of This And More

Just go to http://www.amazon.com/Fitness-Tips-Wish-Knew-ebook/dp/B00ANJ484W to claim your copy.

Don’t Have A Kindle? – No Problem

You can get a free kindle reading app for your computer (or tablet or smartphone) by going here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

How To Not Be Skinny – 5 Tips To Get Big Muscles Naturally

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Me after I gained over 40lbs naturally.

Overcoming Skinniness For Men

I know first hand how much it sucks to be weak and skinny. Growing up, I wasn’t very athletic. Although I enjoyed certain sports, being smaller meant I would be one of the last picked on teams. I also got teased for my size and although I was never seriously bullied, my friends and classmates wouldn’t hesitate to push me around knowing they could get away with it. I can still recall getting thrown around on the playground by a classmate (who later actually became a friend) in grade school and feeling helpless.

Throughout most of high school, I weighed a massive 118lbs. But before going into senior year, I studied the secrets to building muscle naturally. I was determined to figure out how to not be skinny and maximize my muscular potential. Once I knew these simple steps, I was able to pack on over 25 pounds in a matter of a few short months – all without adding extra fat and maintaining a six pack.

Later, I built upon my foundation with some more advanced techniques. I have at one point benched press 345 pounds at a bodyweight of just over 165 making it just over twice my bodyweight. At another point, I hit a bodyweight of 176 pounds while maintaining a six pack. All of this done without illegal drugs, steroids, or even legal pro-hormones. Needless to say, I figured out a few tricks to packing on muscle and you’re about to discover some of these same methods so you can go from skinny to huge fast.

Tip 1: Eat More High Quality Nutrient And Calorie Dense Foods

Eating more is essential if you want to not be skinny anymore. This was and still to this day is the hardest part for myself when it comes to building muscle. The reason a guy is usually skinny is that he either has a fast metabolism and/or a small appetite. If you want to get big, you’re going to need to eat big.

While this is obvious, where some people screw up is they eat a lot of the wrong kinds of foods. This best foods for building muscle are those high in both calories and nutrients. This is because, given a limited appetite, you’ll want to maximize the amount of calories and nutrition you take in.

A plate full of broccoli is healthy, but it will fill you up before giving you the calories you need to grow. On the flip side, sugary drinks and desserts will add a ton of calories, but not a lot of nutrients. They’ll also mostly be calories from sugars and unhealthy fats rather than from healthy fats, slow digesting carbohydrates, and quality protein. We want to get big from muscle, not adding fat.

Examples of a nutrient and calorie dense foods that are great for bodybuilding would be nuts, eggs, meats, fish, sweet potatoes, organic potatoes, hemp seeds, buckwheat, quinoa, rice, wheat germ, avocado, coconut oil, macadamia oil, olive oil, whey protein, and others.

These foods should of course still be balanced with other foods that are high in nutrients even if not high in calories such as fiberous vegetables.

One problem is that many skinnier guys, as much as they may want to build muscle, fear they’re going to add too much fat. This is particularly an issue for guys that are “skinny-fat” who have little muscle but still carry extra fat. By choosing the right kinds of foods and avoiding too much junk, this can largely be avoided.

But a big part of it is psychological. Remember, it is a lot easier to lose 10 pounds of fat than to gain 10 pounds of muscle. My favorite method for keeping fat gains low while building muscle is by following a lean gains type of intermittent fasting approach. See more details here.

Tip 2: Follow A Proven Hypertrophy Workout Program

I’m thankful that when I started out I had a great workout routine to follow designed specifically from a former skinny guy to help hardgainers build muscle. I’ve found over the years however there is no “one size fits all” program. Skinny “hard gainer” guys in particular need a routine that takes into account their unique body type.

For those who don’t have a solid foundation of muscle, I’ve found training splits that workout muscle groups more frequently such as HST to be very beneficial. The frequent training sessions allows the nervous system to quickly learn the proper movement pattern for each workout.

As I progressed, I’ve found upper and lower body splits as well as “traditional” one body part per week style training can be effective. I don’t recommend body part splits as much for beginners though as I feel more frequent hitting of each muscle group results in quicker gains for newbies.

See my recommended routines for a variety of good routines to suit your needs.

The most progress I ever made was following what some would consider extreme overtraining. It was a routine in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Encyclopedia of Natural Bodybuilding. I was supplementing heavily with branch chained amino acids to aid in recovery and it worked extremely well.

Even if you don’t have access to a gym, you can still get huge. Doing a combination of gymnastics style bodyweight training with a set of rings and a pullup bar allowed me to get insanely strong while still packing on muscle in my own home. Water jugs can also be used as inexpensive dumbbell replacements along with a set of affordable resistance bands.

Tip 3: Change Exercise Routines That Aren’t Working

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Having worked out in a variety of gyms over the past 9 years, I can see a lot of guys doing the same routine month in and out without any changes in their body. There is no shame in quitting if you’re quitting something that doesn’t work.

The caveat here is that you don’t simply change something every single week because of not seeing progress. But if you’ve been doing the same routine for a while and have little to no gains for it, assuming your diet is in check, it’s time to switch things up. The body will adapt to whatever demands are placed on it.

The best strategies that people often overlook for maximizing muscle gains are found in this free report on utilizing various muscle building factors in your training. Things to try are one or more of the following:

Go to an entirely new workout style.
Change the order of the exercises.
Change the rest period.
Incorporate heavier weights and power lifting style exercises.
Incorporate lighter weights and high rep “pump” training.
Utilize explosive movements like high jumps, medicine ball slams, and “clapping” pushups.
Targeting a weak muscle and training it more frequently.
Follow a routine that incorporates all of these elements over several months.

Tip 4: Get Adequate Rest And Recovery

Your body grows when you’re resting, not in the gym. I credit a lot of the gains I made early on to making sure I was getting enough sleep and not getting to stressed out in my life. While a solid program will make sure your muscles are rested up enough between workouts, it’s up to you to make sure you’re getting enough sleep and managing stress for total body recovery.

There are a few things that can be done to enhance recovery such as:

Get enough sleep.
Use a grounding mat.
Drink chamomile tea to relax nerves after a workout.
Alternating hot and cold water in the shower to enhance recovery.
Practice meditation.
Utilize the stress reduction techniques from Heartmath.

Tip 5: Know Your Supplements

I know I got really caught up in the whole magic pill idea of a supplement that’s going to build a ton of muscle for me. The hyped up adds create a false illusion that a pill is going to get you jacked and be the answer for how to not be skinny.

Just the other day, I was walking down the street and a guy out of the blue goes “creatine?” He was asking if my big muscles were built by creatine.

While I have used creatine in the past and do recommend it, it is just a supplement. It’s easier for him to think that my results came from creatine or even protein powder than from hours in the gym and a strict diet. There are many times nowadays where I don’t take any particular supplements (including protein powder) outside of a few herbs for general health.

The truth is, you don’t need supplements to get big, and most of them are a waste of money. Not because they don’t ever work (though they usually don’t), but because spending $50-$100 on something that may add an extra pound or two of muscle per month isn’t as economical as investing that money into quality food.

The supplements I do recommend for building muscle naturally as well as general health (without breaking the bank) are:

Hemp, Whey, and/or Rice Protein from TrueNutrition.com (use coupon code DKD714 to save money)
Fish Oil
Vitamin D
Astaxanthin (for general health and recovery)
Magnesium or magnesium oil
Digestive enzymes (good for skinny guys who have trouble digesting and absorbing food properly)
Chaga and/or reishi mushroom for keeping immune system strong and total health.
Creatine (proven) Creatine is not needed, but it does help.
Beta Alanine (Debatable effectiveness)
BCAA (Debatable effectiveness) I only use BCAA if I’m training really hard and want an extra edge. Otherwise your diet and protein powders supply enough branch chained amino acids.

Reader Comments: What Challenges Have You Faced Building Muscle Naturally As A Skinny Guy?

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How To Keep Gaining Muscle – 5 Tips To Always Be Growing

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Building Mass All Year Round

When I first started training, every week I was excited to hit the gym and blow past my previous best lifts. I can still recall the excitement of getting that much closer to a 200 lb bench press as each week went by. I could literally see myself transforming in the mirror month after month going from a skinny guy to someone that actually looked somewhat manly. All in all, it pretty easy to stay motivated with rapid newbie gains.

But that didn’t last forever. Eventually progress stalled, and it felt like I was having to fight tooth and nail to just add a rep or two to a lift and get even a fraction of an inch bigger.

This can be one of the most frustrating issues a guy deals with when trying to pack on muscle. Slowed or non-existent gains can sap motivation if one doesn’t know what to do about it. Before I did the things I’m about to share with you, I felt like I was doomed to just slowly grind away for the rest of my life to get every last ounce of additional muscle.

But after I made a few simple tweaks, particularly when I saw what a friend was doing that was getting him incredible results, I’ve found that gaining muscle non-stop without plateauing is possible for just about anyone serious about their bodybuilding training. Keep reading to find out my top 5 tips on how to keep gaining muscle year after year.

Increase Calories

If you want to grow, you’re going to need a lot of quality calories. The thing that can easily be overlooked however is that as you gain more muscle, you’re going to need to increase your calorie intake appropriately.

When I started out and went from 118lbs to 153lbs, I had to continually ramp up my calorie intake. Once I was in the 150s and wanted to get to the 170s, I couldn’t keep eating the same amount of calories that got me my initial muscle mass. I had to eat like a 170 pound person to become a 170 pound person.

While this may seem stupidly obvious, what isn’t so obvious is how many calories one may actually be eating vs. thinking they’re eating. If you’re not gaining any weight, be it fat or muscle, it may have less to do with what’s going on in the gym and more to do with what’s going on in the kitchen. The first place to turn to when your mass gains slow down is what’s on your place.

Focus On Exercise Form And Technique

The second area that I’ve seen countless guys in the gym screw up is their exercise form in the gym. As a beginner, a person can get away with crappy form and still get stronger and grow. But once someone gets more advanced, those weak links and sloppy habits will catch up with them.

“Proper” form though isn’t just about doing exercises with picture perfect technique. It’s also about learning how to create tension in the proper muscles. Here’s an example.

Do a pushup.

Now this time, focus on contracting your pecs, squeezing your hands together, and imagine pushing the ground away from you. Maintain tension in your pecs the entire time and go a bit slower up and down.

Notice a difference?

When it comes to building muscle, it’s not just about getting a weight from point A to point B. It’s about learning how to recruit the right muscles for the job. This can mean leaving the ego at the door, dropping the weights down, slowing the tempo a bit, and learning to really contract the proper muscles.

While lowering the weights you use and focusing on better form and muscle recruitment may seem like a step backwards, it’s actually setting you up for much better and more continuous gains down the road.

Specialization

Specialization is a form of training where you do extra work for one or only a couple target muscle groups while doing less work (maintenance) for the rest of the body. This is not recommended for beginners, but it is absolutely perfect for those who’ve built a solid foundation and want to continue getting those “newbie” type of gains in certain muscles or lifts.

People have reported out of this world gains in certain lifts and muscle groups, even if they had many years of training already, by doing specialization programs.

For myself, my legs are a strong-point and responded well to training early on. The thing is, working the legs demands a lot of my body’s recovery abilities. So it makes sense for me as I advance to do less work for my legs and then bump up the work for something like my arms. This allows my body to take its limited recovery abilities and direct all that growth to my arms so they keep growing while my legs stay the same size and strength with relatively little work.

You can actually cycle specialization workout routines throughout the year (tip #5) to keep up your motivation and to keep growing constantly. For information on how to set up a specialization routine, check out this article.

Do A Different Style Of Training

I can still recall the shock of seeing how my friend had blown past me on many major lifts while I was away at college. I thought I knew everything there was to know about how to train to maximize muscle gains. What was his secret?

It turns out, he was doing everything wrong!

Or at least so I thought…

I believed at the time the best way to train was with body part splits where each muscle group was hit once per week. He was hitting each muscle group three times a week with total body workouts. As much as that didn’t fit my “dogma” of proper bodybuilding, I couldn’t argue with his results. I also couldn’t argue with my results either when I copied what he was doing and started getting similar gains.

So was there something wrong with my previous routine? No. It just turns out that there’s no one best way to train. Oftentimes the thing that your body will respond most to is something that it hasn’t adapted to yet.

That means switching up your routine to something different than what your current routine does.

Doing a high volume routine? Try a low volume higher intensity routine.

Doing once per week body part splits? Try 3 full body workouts each week.

Lifting heavy weights for low reps and long rest periods? Try lifting lighter weights with less rest.

The key thing is to recognize that whatever you’ve been doing for a while, it needs to be switched up to prevent the body from adapting. Just don’t keep switching it up every workout so your body never adapts to anything unless you have a set plan in place for how you’re going to progress.

(I should note, if you’re in a particular sport or Olympic lifting where building muscle is secondary to mastering a skill, this isn’t the best approach)

Periodization Routines

Periodization is a way of switching up the style of training throughout different periods of time to maximize performance and gains. There are different types of periodization, and it often takes the wisdom of a trainer to understand how to set up a training cycle to match an individual’s goals. But when done correctly, this is a powerful way to ensure you’re constantly making noticeable gains for the rest of your life.

If you’d like to learn more about how to implement one version of this advanced technique, I highly suggest this free article here.

If you’d like a proven program that already has a plan laid out for lasting gains for an entire year, fitness trainer JC Deen has a great one that I’ve checked out here.

Conclusion

I want to wrap up by making a note that it can be important to manage your expectations. If you’re still getting stronger each workout, even if it’s just adding a pound to a lift, that’s still progress!

If a person could add 5 pounds to every lift and a pound of body weight every week, then we’d all be 300 + pound monsters bench pressing 1000 pounds after a several years. Obviously, this doesn’t happen.

On the other hand, if you’ve been doing the same thing month after month and haven’t seen any gains, it may be time to reconsider your approach. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.

Leave a comment below to let me know how you plan on keeping your gains going strong.

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Best Fitness Gifts For Men and Women

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Gift Ideas For Fitness Enthusiasts

Trying to find that perfect Christmas, holiday, or birthday gift idea for the fitness junkie in your life? Look no further! You’re about to discover the perfect gifts for guys and girls that can match any price point. I can attest as a fitness lover myself that just about any of these gifts would hit the spot for me.

Click a link to scroll down to the section on the page:

Workout Routines and DVDs ($70 – $140)
Exercise and Workout Gear ($10 – $400)
Pedometers and Tracking Devices ($65 – $100)
Fitness Books ($16 – $21)
Health and Wellness Equipment ($100 -$600)
Kitchen Items ($100)

$50 – $70

$60 – $80

Pedometers and Tracking Devices

Fitbit Tracking Device

What Is It?

A device that tracks a person’s steps, calories burned, and sleep cycle and syncs to computer software for additional features.

Who’s It For?

Men and women with health goals and want a near effortless way to track and monitor progress. This is one of the top gifts for people that like “tech” sort of stuff. Great for those who are strict or want to be strict about measuring and tracking their fitness levels.

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Tracks steps and calories burned then transmits that information wirelessly to a computer. Helps a person keep track of their goals and progress automatically. Includes a silent alarm that allows a person to wake themselves up without waking their partner.

Price Range?

$100

Polar Heart Rate Watch Pedometer

What Is It?

A watch that tracks heart rate.

Who’s It For?

Cardio lovers who want to target a certain heart rate during exercise.

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Tracks heart rate and records up to 16 training sessions to measure progress.

Price Range?

$60 – $90

Fitness Books

The 4-Hour Chef by Tim Ferriss

What Is It?

A book that covers how to cook as well as how to learn new skills.

Who’s It For?

Men and women both young and old who want to learn the skills of cooking, eating healthy, and the art of learning new skills. Perfect for both inexperienced and experienced cooks alike.

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Best selling author Tim Ferriss always delivers with his work. This book is full of high quality color photos and details that allow a person to quickly pick up the art of cooking. Tim also covers the important aspects of developing any new skill making this an interesting read even for those with little interest in cooking specifically. Books always make a great affordable gift.

Price Range?

$21

The 4-Hour Body by Tim Ferriss

What Is It?

A book that covers how to burn fat, build muscle, develop incredible strength, overcome injuries, and improve sex life in the least amount of time possible.

Who’s It For?

Any fitness enthusiast. Especially those who want to know how to maximize their health and fitness results in the least amount of time spent each week.

What Are The Features and Benefits?

No matter how knowledgeable a person is, they’ll likely pick up a new thing or two from this book making it an excellent gift idea. Tim has spent years personally experimenting and talking with the world’s elite trainers and professionals on how to “hack” the body to get maximum performance and results.

Price Range?

$16

Health and Wellness Equipment

Inversion Table

What Is It?

A table that allows a person to invert aka. hang upside for back relief and health benefits.

Who’s It For?

Anyone that wants the benefits of inversion therapy or that complains about back and neck pain.

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Inversion therapy benefits include pain relief, strengthening the body and joints, and decompressing the spine. For details about the benefits of inversion, check out this article.

Price Range?

$100 – $150

At Home Infrared Suana

What Is It?

An infrared suana that can be set up at home.

Who’s It For?

Anyone that wants to enjoy the benefits of a sauna and infrared therapy in their own home.

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Saunas and particularly infrared sauna are a great way to detoxifying the body and relieve stress. They provide cardiovascular and calorie burning benefits while simply sitting in the sauna. For more details about the benefits of infrared saunas, check out this article.

Price Range?

$500 – $600

Kitchen Items

Breville Juicer

What Is It?

An easy to use juicer for juicing fruit and vegetable juices at home.

Who’s It For?

Guys and girls that want to enjoy the health benefits of juicing.

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Juicing is a tremendous way to improve health with little effort. This Breville juicer is the one I personally use and have found it to be extremely easy to use, quick, and requires very little clean up time. It is one of the best gifts you can give to help someone improve their health.

Price Range?

$100

Reader Comments

What are your favorite gift ideas for fitness lovers?

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Photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net

Body Beast – Beachbody’s At Home Muscle Building Workout

Who Is This For? Hint… It’s NOT Just For Men..

Is This Only For Building Muscle?

What Equipment Do You Need?

What Kind Of Results Did You Get?

Who WON’T Get Results With This?

Final Thoughts

How Do I Get Started Now On Body Beast?

Questions?

What Makes Something Healthy?

Why Superfoods Kick Ass

More Superfoods = Less Cravings

My Ultimate Breakfast Recipe

Where To Get The Ingredients

Too Busy To Exercise?

25 Minute Workouts

Getting Started

The Best Strategy Ever For Sticking To It?

What Are Mini Habits?

How Do Small Habits Lead To Big Results?

Who Needs This?

How Do You Get Started?

The Fitness Tips You WISH You Knew

Do You Wish You Knew…

Get All Of This And More

Don’t Have A Kindle? – No Problem

Overcoming Skinniness For Men

Tip 1: Eat More High Quality Nutrient And Calorie Dense Foods

Tip 2: Follow A Proven Hypertrophy Workout Program

Tip 3: Change Exercise Routines That Aren’t Working

Tip 4: Get Adequate Rest And Recovery

Tip 5: Know Your Supplements

Reader Comments: What Challenges Have You Faced Building Muscle Naturally As A Skinny Guy?

Building Mass All Year Round

Increase Calories

Focus On Exercise Form And Technique

Specialization

Do A Different Style Of Training

Periodization Routines

Conclusion

Gift Ideas For Fitness Enthusiasts

Table Of Contents

Workout Routines and DVDs

P90x

What Is It?

Who’s It For?

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Price Range?

P90x 2

What Is It?

Who’s It For?

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Price Range?

Tony Horton’s 10 Minute Trainer Home Workout

What Is It?

Who’s It For?

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Price Range?

Insanity Home Fat Loss Workout DVDs

What Is It?

Who’s It For?

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Price Range?

Zumba DVDs

What Is It?

Who’s It For?

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Price Range?

Exercise and Workout Gear

Cellerciser Rebounder

What Is It?

Who’s It For?

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Price Range?

Adjustable Kettlebell

What Is It?

Who’s It For?

What Are The Features and Benefits?

Price Range?

Bowflex Adjustable Dumbbells