ABOUT LIFTING

This is my general thinking and philosophy about lifting; and what has worked well for me the last 15 years.

The best way is to focus on multi joint lifts since these lifts engage more muscle and cause your body to produce more testosterone

The main thing for me is to keep a simple program so that I can stick with it and focus 100% when I'm at the gym

"A" Day

  • Lat pull down (supinated grip)

  • Shoulder press

"B" Day

  • Squat

  • Benchpress

(optional: deadlift once a week)

  • Go to the gym every day alternating A and B

  • Focus on good form and range of motion (find videos on YouTube if you need help with form)

  • Try to add more weight or more reps each time. If you find your plateauing, then reduce frequency by adding a rest day. I recommend five sets of each (five reps x 5 sets if you're doing heavyweight, 10 reps x 5 sets if you're doing lightweight for each set (this is different than Tim Ferris/4HB who was advising only doing heavy weights and a very slow tempo, 5 seconds up and five seconds down) there is a lot of evidence that a slightly faster tempo will engage more muscle fiber, so I'm recommending 1 to 2 seconds up in 2 to 4 seconds down (see Chad Waterberry's book "Huge in a Hurry") do a heavy weight A & B at least once a week

  • After you do the core exercises for each day you can add optional exercises for abdominals and arms, since we're guys, we always want big arms

  • Low carb diet: lots of leafy greens, vegetables, and lean protein (chicken breast or salmon), occasional brown rice, no sugar, no bread; eat slightly more than your 'maintenance' calories. And or intermittent fasting if you're really looking to get shredded — just coffee & water until at least 12noon, ideally 4pm. Then a normal dinner. If you're trying to get more lean, then aim for slightly less than your maintenance calories. Some research shows that a lean body will favor muscle growth, so it is important to get lean & stay lean as you train.

  • Also for getting/staying lean: consider low impact / "slow" cardio (like walking uphill on the treadmill for 30 minutes) or HIIT cardio for fat loss also. I prefer slow cardio



PROGRAM SPECIFICS (2022-2024)

(weights are in pounds)

Nutrition:

  • Target — 150g protein per day. Otherwise low carb, lots of leafy greens. Avoiding sugar & white carbs. Brown carbs only on occasion.

  • Intermittent fasting from 12midnight to 3pm each day. Black coffee & water during fast. Protein shake around 3 or 4pm (50g protein), then dinner (~75g protein). Greek yogurt (25g protein) and frozen berries for dessert. No fasting on either Sunday so I can get brunch.



Lifting:

  • Fri + Sat — “heavy” days — slow to medium lifting tempo

    • A [Fri]

      • shoulder press (dumbbells 40+40 or machine 130) 5 x 5

      • lat pulldown (currently parallel grip due to elbow 195) 5 x 5

      • Abs pulley, planks, vacuums

      • bicep curls (currently parallel grip due to elbow 40) 5 x 5

    • B [Sat]

      • barbell squat (135) 5 x 5

      • bench press (135) 5 x 5

      • abs pulley, planks, vacuums

      • tricep pulldowns (5 x 5)

  • Sun - Thurs — “volume” days, medium to faster lifting tempo —

    • Sun = A 3x20 of the above, plus 2 other exercises for each (lateral raises, rear delt pulley; cable pulls,

    • Mon = B 3x20 of the above, plus 2 other exercises for each (leg extension machine, leg curl machine; cable flies, incline dumbbell press)

    • Tues = problem group day: shoulders, biceps, abs

    • Wed = same as Sun

    • Thurs = same as Mon







CURRENT PROGRAM SPECIFICS (2024 - Present) — The “short on time” plan due to long work hours weekdays

(weights are in pounds)

Nutrition:

  • Target — 150g protein per day. Otherwise low carb, lots of leafy greens. Avoiding sugar & white carbs. Brown carbs only on occasion.

  • Intermittent fasting from 12midnight to 3pm each day. Black coffee & water during fast. Protein shake around 3 or 4pm (50g protein), then dinner (~75g protein). Greek yogurt (25g protein) and frozen berries for dessert. No fasting on either Sunday so I can get brunch.


Lifting:

  • Sat + Sun — “heavy” days — slow to medium lifting tempo

    • A [Sat]

      • shoulder press (dumbbells 40+40 or machine 130) 5 x 5

      • lat pulldown (currently parallel grip due to elbow 195) 5 x 5

      • Abs cable or hanging raises, vacuums x 3 each

      • bicep hammer curls (currently parallel grip due to elbow 40) 5 x 5

      • shoulder shrugs (cables) 5 x 5

    • B [Sun]

      • barbell squat (135) 5 x 5

      • bench press (135) 5 x 5

      • Abs cable or hanging raises, vacuums x 3 each

      • tricep pulldowns (5 x 5)

  • Mon - Fri — “volume” days for problem areas:

    • Mon = bicep curls, cable abs, shoulder raises, tricep cables 20 x 3 for all exercises

    • Tue = bicep curls, cable abs, shoulder raises, tricep cables 20 x 3 for all exercises

    • Wed = bicep curls, cable abs, shoulder raises, tricep cables 20 x 3 for all exercises

    • Thu = bicep curls, cable abs, shoulder raises, tricep cables 20 x 3 for all exercises

    • Fri = bicep curls, cable abs, shoulder raises, tricep cables 20 x 3 for all exercises