So I got my testosterone test results back…

This is how I feel right now

…and it's not good.

I've been lucky most of my life.

Lean, healthy, can take a beating. Strong, fast, and active. Smart, inquisitive, and kind.

But too much stress, too little rest, and shortcuts have killed my metabolism, fucked up my heart, and cut my T in half.

Shit!

So it's time to get really fucking serious.

I'm too young to feel this damned old. Plus, I have 4 kids, all under 11 years old (my youngest just turned 2).

I ain't having no more. Trip to the doc's a couple years back virtually guarantees that! (snip snip)

I need to be here with them. And I love my wife and want to spend another 50 years with her.

Early death isn't an option.

And zest for life is a high priority.

This is what I'm going to do:

• MOVE every. damned. day. Do something active and physical for 60 minutes. I may split this into 2 sessions of 30 minutes each due to time constraints.
• Meditate. I need to calm the hell down. Relax. Chill.
• Lift weights 3-4 times a week. I still haven't decided if I want to do my trusted 3x a week split or a M-Tu-Th-Fr split. I've had my best results on the 3x split but 4 days a week may prove more beneficial at this point in time. Hell, I should just try both.
• Cardio 5x a week, in the gym. At least 30 minutes every day at a fairly high intensity.
• Go back to small, frequent meals. I've experimented with intermittent fasting (don't eat from 8pm until 12pm the following day). It's easy, but totally ineffective for me.
• I need to drop 40 pounds. I know. How the fuck did I get this out of shape? Shit, I could see myself getting fatter. Why didn't I just turn this fatass around before it got out of hand? Reasons, that's why 🙂
• Use supplements wisely. Below I will post my “supplement stack.” I've always been a huge believer in supplementing for specific effects. Now is the time.
• Mindset matters: That's where the meditation comes in. Plus, I'm going to try the wishy washy “affirmations” and “gratitude.” Yes, I said it. It's feel-good shit but man, in the past, when I did it, I'll be damned if it didn't work! Visualization will play a role here, too.
• I'm going to write more. Writing is my heaven, my safe place, my mental yoga.

Dang, I didn't mean to lay it all out on you. But I bet at some point, you've faced similar challenges. And I bet you overcame them, just like I will.

Here's the supplement stack I mentioned:

• Omega 3s from krill oil
• A good food-based multi-vitamin/mineral
• A supplement I've used in the past that made me feel great – Longevity
• A supplement I've researched that can naturally help T levels (and I know it works in the libido area, because I've tried it – it works super fast and doesn't have any noticeable side effects like I've heard Viagra and its cousins have) – K20
• To help metabolize fat and keep my insulin and glucose levels where they should be – Gluco Guardian
• I have used, and will use now and in the future, MexRx – I love this stuff!

If the above doesn't produce results (mostly in higher T levels, losing body fat, and feeling better), I will pursue the HRT path – yes, sticking myself with freaking needles full of testosterone.

I'm reading up on all of that now. I've been in consultation with a doctor who is open-minded about this sort of thing, which I've found is pretty darn rare.

Out of the Box Muscle Building

You CAN change yourself.

When I first started weight training at 12, I was a fanatical football fan. I'd watch all day, gorge myself on protein shakes and snacks, and workout between games and during halftime breaks.

Crazy.

When I finally stopped training like a madman, I started making gains.

Huge gains.

The less I trained, the more strength and size I added.

Life is a big conflicting and confusing and counter-intuitive thing, right?

When I was a skinny hardgainer, I was lifting every day, doing many sets of many exercises. I ate all damned day long.

After all, that's what all the bodybuilding mags said to do. Hell, “hardgainer” wasn't even a thing back then – you were just an ectomorph.

After years of frustration, I took a different approach.

• I cut out cardio.
• I lifted 3x a week.
• Heavy.
• Few sets.
• Low reps (3-6) for upper body.
• High reps and HEAVY weights for legs (15-25), like Tom Platz.

That year I did that, I gained 60 pounds and was still under 6 percent body fat.

Don't ever let anybody tell you that's impossible. I did it. I know you can, too.

No steroids, either.

If you want to – but you must think out of the box.

Like I did.

If it ain't working, stop doing it. Try something else.

After all, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

Ain't. Gonna. Happen.

Eggs are the Perfect Muscle-Building and Fat-Loss Food

Eggs are a perfect protein source

Eggs are the perfect muscle-building food: They're protein-dense, promote fat loss, and the bad cholesterol image they've been saddled with was completely overblown!

Eggs offer the most complete source of protein from food (as opposed to supplements); in fact, they're the yardstick that all other foods fail miserably at measuring up to. The “biological value” (BV) of the egg is 100 on a scale of 1 to 100. Cow's milk, for example, comes in at 91 while beef comes in at 80 (wikipedia).

On a side note, whey protein isolate (from cow's milk) comes in at a whopping 104! This is the primary reason that you should be ingesting, and investing in, whey protein powders mixed with milk.

Coupled with its small size, the egg gives you a lot of protein for its small weight. In other words, it's protein rich and nutrient dense.

Don't worry, either, about the fat or the cholesterol in eggs (if you're a healthy individual): You will not increase your body fat or cholesterol levels by ingesting several eggs a day. In fact, you could probably eat a dozen eggs a day for several weeks in a row (if not months) and not suffer any ill consequences.

The egg is an ideal source of protein, offering all of the essential amino acids your body needs. Plus, eggs have an incredible anabolic effect on a person's body. Old timers like the late Vince Gironda used to prescribe dozens of eggs a day to his pupils during their brief (3 to 6 weeks) “bulking up” phases. This super food causes an outpouring of human growth hormone, which helps immensely in BOTH muscle-building and fat-loss efforts.

In short, you will build muscle and drop bodyfat by making intelligent use of eggs in your diet.

Give them a try! You'll like the results.

Do you know how to hard boil the perfect egg?

Beginning Muscle Building. What Should I Eat?

Skinny? Can't gain weight? Read up.

will k asked: I'm planning to start working out again at the gym. I'm 14, around 6 foot and I weigh about 145 lbs. I'm skinny, so I'm mostly muscle and no fat. I'm very athletic so I can't really gain weight. Before or after my workouts, what should I eat or drink? Should I buy muscle building supplements?

My answer: You have to begin eating a lot. You have to create a positive caloric balance – which simply means eat more than you expend.

And it's hard. It really is. Believe me when I say I used to be like you – all muscle, no fat, but the muscle I had was little. I was skinny.

It felt like I was going to eat until I exploded. I'd go periods of time where I just wasn't hungry, followed by times where I couldn't get enough to eat.

My metabolism was on a roller coaster. I couldn't gain a pound.

And if I gained a pound, I'd lose it just as quickly as I'd gained it.

It sucks.

So I began eating 8 times a day, about 30-40 grams of protein at each feeding. I stopped running. I stopped moving almost entirely. I had to stop worrying.

I thought more training was better. It's not. I cut my training down a lot – down to 3 times a week on a split routine, so in any given week the MOST I trained any bodypart was twice.

But I lifted heavy. Few sets, low reps, high weights.

Focus on getting stronger. Once you're stronger, you can lift heavier weights in your bodybuilding routines.

But the key is eating a lot. Supplements are your friend.

But don't eat weight gainers – they fuck up your metabolism. The sugar kills your gains. Use something like MetRx instead. Trader Joe's carries it and it's not terribly expensive.

Mix one scoop with 8 ounces of whole milk. Drink one before and after your workout.

And eat all damned day long! Try GOMAD.

Consider eating right before going to sleep, too. Doing that will usually make you hungry in the morning, so you can eat more.

The name of the game is calories, and protein is your friend. Sugar is your foe.

FYI – Lou Ferrigno was 6'5, about 140 pounds when he started bodybuilding 🙂

Why Nutrition Science is Often Confusing and Misleading [Infographic]

Nutrition science is often confusing and misleading

I subscribe to Precision Nutrition's newsletter and today, they sent me a whopper of an infographic.

It gives 9 reasons why nutrition science is often confusing and misleading. I'd post the infographic here, but for some reason, it's not rendering correctly on the page.

So here's a link.

9 reasons:

1. Nutrition research is still in its infancy – vitamins were discovered just about a 100 years ago.
2. Funding goes to disease treatment – prevention gets very little funding.
3. Conflicts of interest – if a soda company does a study on sugar's effects on health, what do you think the outcome will be?
4. Too many variables – the scientific method requires controlling all variables and making changes to just a few. There are thousands, maybe millions of variables and nearly none of them are controllable, or even known.
5. Nutritional studies are observational – they rely on people remembering or describing accurately what they ate a week or two ago.
6. Measurement tools have limitations – many food labels are wrong. So how do you know how many calories you consumed?
7. What you eat doesn't affect you right away – it could take 30 years for a six-pack of beer a day habit to ruin your liver and jack up your metabolism.
8. A study's findings may not apply to you – many studies rely on obese people, or extremely fit athletes – because they're available for studies. The findings may not apply to you if you're just 10 pounds overweight or lead a very sedentary lifestyle.
9. Reporting a study's findings is very difficult – if you think the research is difficult, try summarizing the findings!

It's a great graphic that shows exactly why you and I are both often confused when we hear or read about the “latest & greatest” in nutrition information.

Remember when whole eggs were bad for you? Now, not so much.

Remember “paper or plastic” bags the grocer offered you? Now, they charge you a dime for a paper bag and plastic isn't even an option.

Remember when saturated fats were bad and polyunsaturated fats were good? Today, turn that upside down.

Crazy, right?