There are a few things that need to happen in order to produce muscle growth. You need to use significant load when lifting weights Enough time under tension to create structural damage to the muscle tissue Enough stimuli to up-regulate anabolic hormones and increase protein synthesis Proper recovery and workout nutrition Many people often think that if they lift as heavy as possible, or use as much volume (sets and reps) as possible they will […]
There are a few things that need to happen in order to produce muscle growth. You need to use significant load when lifting weights Enough time under tension to create structural damage to the muscle tissue Enough stimuli to up-regulate anabolic hormones and increase protein synthesis Proper recovery and workout nutrition Many people often think that if they lift as heavy as possible, or use as much volume (sets and reps) as possible they will […]
There are a few things that need to happen in order to produce muscle growth. You need to use significant load when lifting weights Enough time under tension to create structural damage to the muscle tissue Enough stimuli to up-regulate anabolic hormones and increase protein synthesis Proper recovery and workout nutrition Workout #1 When I think of athletes with huge quads, I think of Olympic lifters. They perform a ton of fronts, heavy. So […]
During the last several years, the loaded carry (most notable the farmers carry) has exploded on the scene. Everyone from bodybuilders to Cross fitters has started to include various loaded carries into their routines and for a good reason. A loaded carry is where an athlete picks up and carries a heavy object and walks with it for an extended period of time or distance. This can be done with various objects, such as dumbbells, […]
The longer that I am in the lifting game, the more I look to be more efficient with my workouts. In a perfect world, I would write programs for my clients and myself that would include the following: Soft tissue works with various foam rollers and massage balls Corrective exercises to improve any dysfunctions Mobility work Stretching Groundwork (rolling, crawling, Get-ups, etc.) Nervous system development/power work (med ball throws and plyos) Strength training Conditioning/cardiovascular work […]
The best way to build muscle is to perform full-body strength training sessions frequently throughout the week. The combo of lower and upper-body movement that involves multiple muscle groups done in a circuit fashion stimulates anabolic hormones and protein synthesis which are two of the major players at stimulating muscle growth. Performing multiple full-body strength routines must be done correctly in order to produce results. Hitting each muscle group 3 to 4 days per week […]
Power training is a vital piece of the functional training puzzle for both competitive athletes & general population clients. Progressive exposure to high-velocity movements trains the nervous system to recruit high-threshold motor units, reflexively stabilize joints and develop the local tissue resiliency necessary to withstand the demands of high-velocity sports, making it a valuable tool for both performance enhancement and injury reduction. Throwing low/moderate weight medicine balls with intent and at high velocity promotes the […]
In 2017, I wrote a Complete Programming Guide For Small Group and Large Group Personal Training Since then, there has been over 100 of our intern at State of Fitness that have read the manual. Each semester, our interns are required to turn in a detailed summary of what they learned from the manual. One of our amazing interns, Maryam Abbasi, has written a fantastic summary I wanted to share. You can click io the […]
Real Workouts. Real Eating. Real life.
I have something to confess. I am a HUGE overeater! Yes, a trainer of 12 years and training facility owner LOVES to eat! Big shocker, right? But who doesn’t love to eat?
Well, I think I have a few skeletons in my closet that I need to clean out. People who know me will tell you that I can eat an unreal amount of food, and sometimes it is BAD food.
1. When I go out to dinner with my wife, I want to get the bread basket, appetizer, maybe two of them, a salad, a large main course, and sometimes desert. My wife hardly eats half of her meal, so I eat the rest of it along with all of my meal. The server often comments on how much I just ate in disbelief that all of the food is totally destroyed.
2. For dinner, I will often eat a meal large enough for 2 people. Less than an hour later, I will start looking through the fridge and pantry. The “second dinner” usually consists of one, or more of the following:
While some of these are healthy options, does my body really need it? Probably not.
3. I once ate 6 Junior Bacon Cheeseburgers and a Biggie fry after a long day of tailgating. I was still hungry 2 hours later.
4. When my wife and I order pizza, we will get 2 large pizzas. My wife eats maybe a quarter of one of the pizzas, I eat the rest.
5. Since meeting my father in-law he has had to double his groceries and ingredient list when we come up north to visit. I always thank him and tell him how much I love his cooking. I eat everything he makes, and eat a lot of it. I think this is the only reason why he likes me since I am his biggest food fan.
6. When I was young, my brother and I would go on “food trips” where we would pre-plan each fast food restaurant that we would go to. We would count to the last penny to how much food we could buy with the money we had. It was an all out fat ass eating journey. No wonder we both went through our “fat kid” phases.
7. After many of my bodybuilding shows, I would gain 15-25 pounds within 2 days. I would eat whole boxes of cereal, 1/2 gallons of chocolate milk, and donuts for breakfast, along with whatever else I could get my hands on. Pizza, burgers, you name it, I would eat it. No holds barred. The extreme dieting always pushed me to the limits and when I was done, I was ready to eat!
I could go on and on with my eating stories, but I think you get the picture. I can eat a lot of food and I might have a problem. Well, maybe not a problem, but I tend to do things in extremes.
I have an addictive personality by nature. When I enjoy doing something, or feel like I can do something well, I dive right in and do it to the extreme. Take my career and training for example; at 20 years old I started with the intentions to do whatever it took to become successful. I noticed that I was kind of good at it, so I let it consume me.
The same goes with bodybuilding. However much it took to workout and diet to look the way that I wanted, I would do it. The mass gaining phases of the sport was also enjoyable. As long I ate enough of the right nutrients, I was allowed to eat a ton of food. This let my inner fat kid come out to the extreme.
Somewhere down the line, I started to realize that the extremes were too tough to manage all of the time. Going from one extreme to the next was tough. Eating a bunch of food and then thinking I could out train a high calorie diet to maintain my 6-pack just didn’t cut it mentally or physically.
That is when I really started to understand nutrition and eating habits. I had tremendous knowledge about nutrition, supplementation, and working out. Putting it to use consistently and developing the habit was and is the hard part.
This is how writing my book all started. I wanted to share the key fundamentals of creating good eating habits that I did always practiced despite my extremes. Below is the table of contents so you can get a better picture of what I talk about in my book.
Prelude: A Nation Of Nutrition Overload
Introduction: My Journey
Chapter 1: The Fundamentals Of My Nutritional Doctrine
Chapter 2: Fundamental #1 – Reducing Nutritional Deficiencies
Chapter 3: Fundamental #2 – Controlling Food Portions and Macronutrient Breakdowns
Chapter 4 Fundamental #3 – Meal Frequency
Chapter 5: Fundamental #4 – Supplementation
Chapter 6: Fundamental #5 – Workout Nutrition
Chapter 7: The Power of 3/Intermittent Fasting Eating Protocol
Chapter 8: The 30-Day Challenge
Chapter 9: The Power of Changing One Habit at a Time
Chapter 11: The Choice Is Yours
Frequently Asked Questions
Overeating is something that I still do once in a while. Now that I am older and more aware of what is good for my body, I don’t go to the extremes as often as I once did. Even when I did go to the extremes, I always followed the guidelines that I describe in my book. I always made sure that I was putting quality nutrients in my body, everyday, despite the ocasional binge eating.
Even before I started to write my book, I have balanced out my good and bad nutritional habits. It’s just not worth it to continue to damage my body and have to regroup in order to feel better form the binging.
I have also taken a different approach to exercise. The “more is better” approach in order to make-up for the extra caloric intake is also something I do not practice. I know that as long as I get a good workout in, 4-5 days per week, and eat the way I should 90% of the time, I will be just fine. I love to workout, and would workout more if time permitted, but I understand that it’s quality, not quantity. Just like it is when you are eating.
Life balance is something that we are always trying to strive for. Many of us may may never find that balance, which is totally OK. When is comes to eating and exercising, you need to find that balance as much as possible. Exercise enough to improve health and fitness, eat well enough 90% of the time and enjoy the foods you love 10% of the time. Get some sleep and take a vacation.
It will be a constant job throughout your life to do this. The biggest thing is to never give up and always put your health first. Devleloping strong habits one at a time is the key. Get started on your habits today. Don’t wait for a good reason to start because YOU are already a good enough reason!
To learn more on how to find your nutritional balance, pick-up a copy of my E-book. The Grinnell Lifestyle: My Nutritional Doctrine. It may be the best $2.99 you ever spent!
Leave a Reply