"Getting Big is a Battle..."

“Getting big is a battle and my weapon is my fork!” – Dr. John Berardi

Dr. Berardi says it best with this quote. If you want to gain muscle you have to eat. I’ve heard numerous guys say things like:

“I just can’t gain weight”

“I am a hardgainer”

“My metabolism is too fast”

“My genetics won’t allow me to build muscle”

And those are just a few of the many excuses. While I am sure a lot of their workouts probably aren’t the best, if their nutrition was up to par they would at least have some noticeable results. Their problem is they just don’t eat enough. If you want to get big you have to eat big. That doesn’t mean a bunch of shit food either. I’m talking about eating a lot of clean foods. I currently on a clean bulk and weigh 194 pounds. Here is a peak into my diet journal from yesterday:

Meal 1:
Homemade protein shake (Includes healthy fats, protein and complex carbs)
6g Omega-3 Fish Oil

850 cal 28g fat 104g carbs 52g protein

Meal 2:
Homemade protein shake (Includes healthy fats, protein and complex carbs)

790 cal 22g fat 104g carbs 52g protein

Meal 3:
5 oz. Turkey Breast on 2 slices 100% whole wheat bread

300 cal 1g fat 42g carbs 38g protein

Pre/Peri Workout:
1 Spike + BCAA’s

Post Workout:
Whey Isolate with Waxy Maize

540 cal 0g fat 90g carbs 45g protein

Meal 4:
Protein shake

467 cal 12g fat 40g carbs 48g protein

Meal 5:
8 oz. Ground Sirloin
2 cups broccoli

410 cal 17g fat 11g carbs 50g protein

Meal 6:
Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake

426 cal 24g fat 16g carbs 34g protein

Totals: 3783 cal 104 g fat 407 g carbs 319 g protein

Keep in mind this is a training day so my calories are a little higher than off days. I actually utilize carb cycling even when bulking. On my off days my calories are lower and my carbohydrates are much lower. My diet isn’t perfect and could use more vegetables and more whole foods and less shakes. But being a full time student and working full time shakes are about my only options sometimes. Also, my diet isn’t the same everyday and foods change but on workout days calories still stay around 3800-4100. Hopefully this gives you an idea of how important food is. Food is the most anabolic substance known to man. Stop making excuses about being a hardgainer and start eating.

The Day After Thanksgiving

I woke up this morning at around 5:15. Was it to go Christmas shopping and save on all the big sales? Nope, just thinking about the stress of that causes my cortisol levels to rise. (However, it would be nice to try on some clothes today. The lighting in those dressing rooms appears to add 20 lbs of muscle and drop your bodyfat to the low single digits. It is pretty badass, until you get home of course). I did get up today to train clients. Yes, the day after Thanksgiving (which most are out of school and off work) people wanted to train. It wasn’t that I begged them to come in today. I made no threats nor gave any bribes. They simply asked me if they could train. At first it didn’t seem like a big deal. Yet, the more I thought about it, I came to realize it kind of is. I am proud that they have ingrained this into their routine. I had 12 clients come in today to train. Some soccer players, wrestlers, figure athletes, triathletes, powerlifters and some that just enjoy working out and improving themselves. Most would look at today as a day off from work or school and from the gym. Not these people. I am glad these clients wanted to be there. For most it wasn’t their normal time slots or even days. But they chose to train. It just makes me happy to see people that dedicated to getting their workout in and one step closer to their goal. It’s not that they have to, they choose to. I think more people need to start “choosing” to add working out and proper nutrition to their schedule. It should be a part of everyone’s life.

Haterade!

As defined by the urban dictionary a hater is: A person that simply cannot be happy for another person's success. So rather than be happy they make a point of exposing a flaw in that person. The definition of Haterade is: The metaphorical drink that gives haters their ability to hate, just like Gatorade gives athletes the fluids to compete physically. Combined by mixing the words "hater" and "Gatorade".

Lately I feel as if a lot of people have been sipping on a nice cold bottle of Haterade. It seems everyone is jealous of others success. I have high school athletes that their teammates make remarks like: “Oh, I work out alone because I don’t need someone to hold my hand through my workouts.” I mean what the hell? First of all there is absolutely no hand holding going on. Stop hating because they are getting bigger, faster and stronger while you are sitting on your ass after school. Then they are taking your starting position on the team once season starts. Another example that bugs me is when I have a client doing their best to follow their meal plan and get the pounds off. They are super determined but then someone has to drink a bottle of some good ‘ole Haterade and start making negative comments about their progress or other things. Then on top of that start trying to sabotage their dietary efforts but offering junk food to the person. Another example of someone and their Haterade consumption is when someone is working out in the public gym, doing the exercises that work while some someone sits on the leg extension machine giving them dirty looks. Stop it, enough with the hating.

I think its time we sneak into those peoples houses and substitute their Haterade with a nice cup of shut the hell up!

Squats

I was fortunate enough to have my classes cancelled today. That means I have more time to catch up on things I may have been getting behind on. It also gave me a little bit of time catch up on some article reading. I came across a Mike Mahler article on T-Nation.com and loved this excerpt on squats.

“Let's be honest: Lots of guys hate doing squats, and avoid them like a psycho ex-girlfriend. Lots of guys complain about not making progress. How much crossover do you think there is between those two groups?

Pretty close to 100 percent?
Squats work because they're hard to do. They're responsible for more workout-induced puking than any other exercise. (Helpful tip: Don't eat anything for two hours before squatting.)”

That simple short paragraph couldn’t be truer. I don’t care if you are 6 years old or 60, male or female, tall or short, love them or hate them, squats (or a variation of) should be included in your program.