Meal planning for the week is often stressful, so stressful in fact that people end up eating out or eating rubbish. I’m here to share with you my system that will allow you to have both a Grocery List and your Recipes be easily accessible. If you follow this, it will allow you to plan ahead and you will know exactly what to buy each time you go to the market and reduce food-waste. (How many times do you buy groceries that you don’t end up using and they go bad?)

Step 1: Create a “Recipes” Folder and Inside this Recipes folder, create a note for each meal you will make.

The Notes app has come a long way since its introduction. You could now utilize folders so first things first, create a “Recipes” folder by hitting the bottom left corner Folder icon. It will pop-up asking for “iCloud” or “On my Phone”… choose iCloud so you could share this in the future. This is what my Recipes folder looks like with the note for each recipe:

Bonus Technological Tip: You can pin recipes you want to focus on so they are always on the top by sliding the displayed note to the right and hit the pin icon. 

Anytime I find a recipe of something I want to make, I create a new note in the Recipes folder and throw the link to the recipe in there. I have included a video showing how to do this below.

Make the first line of each note the title of the dish. (i.e., Burger w/ Caramelized Onions)

If you make a recipe and decide you like it enough to use again…

• Update the first line with how long it took to prep and cook. (i.e., 30min)
• Copy paste the ingredients from the link into the note for faster reference next time.
• Jot down anything learned from making this (such as what to prep first to save time, modifications/substitutions, etc)

Here’s an example of how one of my recipes look with notes/modifications.

If you make a meal and don’t think you’ll follow that recipe again, delete the note!

• Some of my favorite quick and easy recipes: 
  • Garlic Parmesan Chicken Tenders
  • Pizza Beans (sounds weird, I know!)
  • Chicken Enchiladas
  • Honey Sriracha Salmon

Bonus Technological Tip: Want to copy paste a recipe from an Instagram caption? Take a screenshot of it. Then go to the photo and you can select the text!

It’s not possible to select caption text from an Instagram post, but if you take a screenshot of the page and go to your photos, you can select the text and copy paste it into your preferred note for faster reference. I show how I do this in the video below.

Step 2: Create a “Grocery List” note

Open your Notes app and go to the “All iCloud” folder and create a new note. (The reason you want to make it under the iCloud is so that you could share it and be able to collaborate.)

Copy paste the following into your new note: 

GROCERY LIST

• 24 Eggs
• 1 Gallon Milk
• 500 tubs of Greek Yogurt

What are we making?

• Burger w/ Caramelized Onions
• Salmon with Honey

Meats in Freezer

• Ribeye steaks
• Frozen Bread

Recipes I’ve Made In The Past

• After you make a meal, if you will make it again, cut the meal from the “What are we making?” section to this section for faster reference of what’s a tried and true go-to.

Bonus Technological Tip: You can create hyperlinks of your actual notes.

Select the text, go to the right until you see an “Add Link” button and then start typing the note name and select it and it will create a link to the note. This will make it easier for you to go immediately to the recipe you want from your Grocery List note where you’ve eventually gotten a list of “Recipes I’ve Made In The Past.” 

Again, I show how I do this in the video below.

Step 3 (Optional): Share this Grocery List note with your family so all of you could update this single list to make shopping easier.

You could share it by simply tapping Share, tap “Send Copy” and switch it to “Collaborate” and then text it to them.

Next time, before you go shopping, think of a few meals you want to make.

Collaborate with your loved ones. Ask them what they would like to eat. Give suggestions from your list of recipes.

• Throw the ingredients you need in the grocery list. 
• Update the “What are we making?” section with the recipes you will make.

Step 4: To switch quickly between the Grocery List Note and Recipes Folder, utilize the Widgets!

When adding ingredients to the grocery list, it was a little cumbersome to go from the recipe notes back to the grocery list, but I figured out a solution was to utilize the widget feature! Widgets appear in your “Today view” on iOS if you click to the right from your lock screen or home screen. The goal is to add the Shared Folder and Recipe Folder individually as widgets so it will look like this:

Here’s how to setup the Notes widget to display your Grocery List and Recipe folder with one flick! I’ve included a video showing this process below:

1. 1. Swipe right from the Home Screen or Lock Screen to get to the widget space.
   2. Touch and hold a widget or an empty area and wait for apps to jiggle or choose Edit Home Screen.
   3. Tap Edit in the upper-left corner.
   4. Tap Add Widget.
   5. Search Notes to add that.
   6. Choose the 2nd-view (my preference).
   7. Tap Done.

Do this twice so you will have TWO Notes widgets.

One will be the “Recipes” Folder and the other will be the “Shared” Folder (which contains your Grocery List that you’ve shared).

Here’s how to edit the widget to display those folders:

Touch and hold one of the Notes widgets and choose “Edit Widget” and you will be able to choose a different folder. Make one display the “Recipes” folder. Then edit the other Notes widget to display your “Shared” folder. When you finish, you can touch the widget and choose “Edit Home Screen” to then rearrange the way they are displayed (I like mine at the top).

Extra Tips To Save Cooking Time

1. Get an air fryer that is also a toaster oven AND normal oven. This is the one I use. Air fryers warm up way faster and reduce cooking time dramatically which saves a lot of time!
2. Prep ALL your ingredients before you start cooking. This is known as “Mis en place” in French. Sometimes I prep the ingredients in the morning so it’s ready to go in the afternoon or for dinner.
3. Use one-pot meals. These are quick to make and require less clean up. Some of my favorites to give you something to work with are:
   • Cabbage Roll Soup
   • Goulash
   • Paprika Chicken Thigh Bake

And finally, cooking is a lifelong skill that you must cultivate. Following a recipe is very easy. All the information you need for preparing any food is at your fingertips with the internet.

To take a snippet from Brazil’s incredible dietary guidelines:

Hope you found this helpful! Please share it with your loved ones and let me know what you thought of this, especially if you would like me to post more details (recipes?) by contacting me here.

The post How To Meal Plan For the Week With Your Phone in 2025 appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

Watch this video to see how it’s done

So, if you get a thick, looped resistance band and loop it through a sturdy pullup bar, you can then put your body through the loop, around your hips and practice going upside down with the basic crow pose. If that’s easy for you, you could try perfecting your form with the single leg crow pose by seeing how well you could raise your back leg to be in line with your torso. And the funnest thing is to practice doing a bent-arm handstand press.

The 3 exercises mentioned in this video, from easier to harder:

• Band-assisted frog stand (crow pose)
• Band-assisted single leg frog-stand (crow pose)
• Band assisted handstand presses

How does this speed up your gains?

If your goal is to gain the strength to perform a handstand push-up or a press to handstand (or even the simple crow pose), you’ve likely read the importance of getting really good at pike pushups to build the strength. Well, that’s true… but the process is so long and arduous just to increase the strength portion while the movement pattern is never practiced, so no matter what, it’s going to feel very demoralizing that no new skill has yet to come out of it. Adding these band-assisted exercises as a supplemental addition will not only speed up your progress to perform these harder movements but also add the FUN to your training.

What bands to get?

Rubberbanditz has a great set of 3 thick, looped resistance bands that are perfect for utilizing these exercises.

If you are over 200lbs (90kg), opt for this 4-band set so you have access to a thicker band and more variety to combine different resistances.

Still Too Difficult With a Band?

At first these exercises will feel extra hard, so I recommend you start with looping TWO OR THREE bands together as it will provide the most assistance. When you can perform the movement with max assistance, reduce it. Overtime it is very rewarding to perform the exercises with less bands or thinner bands. Each time you reduce the assistance it’s almost like starting all over again but at least you have the movement pattern down. And you’ll get to build it back up even faster.

Tip: Hand Placement Must Not Be Under The Bar

As I mention in the video above, the main thing to be aware of when setting up for this is to make sure you walk your hands back so the band pulls your hips forward in the proper trajectory for assistance. Don’t place your hands directly under the bar.

Balancing Tip: Send The Shoulders Forward

In all the exercises, focus on trusting the band to hold you as you try to send the shoulders forward and keep them forward. As the exercises get harder, you have to do that more. For example, in the frog-stand (crow pose), if you want to extend one leg back, you MUST send the shoulders MORE FORWARD to balance out the center of gravity (since your extended leg is bringing weight backwards.)

Warning: For Doorway Bars

If you have a doorway bar that hooks over the molding (such as the classic “iron gym” or the like) make sure your hands are setting up in a direction that isn’t pulling the bar off the wall. If it’s pulling in the right direction, it will firmly keep it in place.

How to Include This in a Full Training Session

Treat these band-assisted inversion exercises as Skill Work. The meaning of skill work is that it’s going to be something that’s not going to take a tremendous amount of strength, but require frequent repetition to refine the movement pattern.  And skill work should be done after your warm-up but before your strength exercises.

Warm Up -> Skill Work -> Strength Work

For the warm up, if your wrists are finicky, do the wrist mobility warm-up from this page. It’s also nice to do a set of 10 shoulder rolls in downward dog to activate the shoulders properly for these exercises.

Afterwards, try to do 5 sets of 5 repetitions of one of these band-assisted exercises of your choice, focusing on perfecting the form:

• Band-assisted frog stand (crow pose)
• Band-assisted single leg frog-stand (crow pose)
• Band assisted handstand presses

You want to focus on quality, not quantity.

Limit yourself to 5 attempts per set and then rest a few minutes. Keep repeating the practice, focusing on quality. Once you feel that your form is degrading no matter what you do, stop and move onto strength training. This will add 10-15 minutes to your training but add a tremendous amount of joy and play and learning to your workout.

Handstand Press Tips

In the handstand press, keep the shoulders forward while trying to press up and straighten your arms. (If you flare the elbows and bring your shoulders backwards you won’t be able to get to or balance in the handstand even with the band.)

At first, focus on performing a tucked, handstand press. The sequence goes like this: After you place your hands back so the band is pulling on your hips sufficiently in a downward-dog position, walk the feet forward, send your shoulders forward and bend the arms, then tuck your knees in (so your feet are floating in the air) and then straighten your legs and hands simultaneously up into a handstand.

In the first session (or likely longer) you may not be able to straighten the legs, nor the arms. Don’t worry! It’s a very complex movement. Much more complex than you ever expected, and you need to practice this a bunch to get better at even understanding what to do.

After you can press up in a tuck (after several sessions of perfecting the form), you can either move to a thinner band or try to do it with straight legs the entire time instead of a tuck, to replicate a bent-arm pike press handstand.

In conclusion…

Adding these to the start of your workout will add a tremendous amount of fun to your workout, help you get comfortable with getting inverted, and practicing movement patterns and balance for things that are currently out of reach. If you have ANY questions, contact me here.

And read this next if you want to master the crow pose.

The post Add FUN to your training IMMEDIATELY with these Band Assisted Inversion Exercises appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

This post was inspired by the fact that I just finished listening to a podcast with Daniel Vadnal from FitnessFAQs with Alex Leonidas and they were talking about the pros and cons of training in a home gym. I also get a lot of e-mails where people say they have zero equipment and are not sure what to do or have issues with figuring out what to install. So here goes!

The Ultimate Home Gym Setup For Both Weightlifting and Calisthenics

Daniel and Alex concluded that if you have the following gym equipment at home, you will have more than enough to maximize your genetic potential because it will allow you to incorporate literally any kind of exercise into your training routine: bodyweight exercises, weightlifting and active mobility work.

Having the following pieces of equipment in your home gym will allow you to utilize any and every weightlifting and calisthenics exercise at home. In other words, you don’t need anymore than this for strength and hypertrophy training.

Squat Rack + Barbell + PlatesGymnastics RingsAdjustable Dumbbells

Squat Rack with Pullup Bar ($160) and a Barbell with Plates ($150+) enables you to do the bread-and-butter “Big 5” compound lifts below.

These compound lifts form the foundation of any weightlifting program.

Wooden Gymnastics Rings ($30) add tremendous versatility by allowing you to utilize countless bodyweight exercises to build strength, stability and mobility in a highly scalable fashion for people of all levels. They can be hung from the squat racks pullup bar.

Here’s a playlist of my tutorial videos for the above exercises on the rings.

This 55lb Adjustable Dumbbell ($150) will allow you to do isolation exercises that are not possible with a barbell or bodyweight exercises, (such as delt raises, bicep curls and more) filling in any gaps and offering greater versatility.

This 43lb adjustable dumbbell set ($230) has the added benefit of allowing the plates to also mimic a kettle bell and small barbell.

But what if you don’t have the space or money for all this? What do you actually NEED at home? What is essential for a home gym? Check out the next section.

The Ultimate Home Gym for Minimalists or Small Spaces

Most of us are not trying to be elite-level trainees. We want to train to be fit and healthy. We want to look and feel good. And many of us live in small spaces, such as apartments, where a squat rack, barbell and plates are out of the question. Or it may be too costly. So here’s my comprehensive recommendation given this scenario.

Weightlifting is not a necessity to workout. Both calisthenics and weightlifting are valid resistance-training methods that can build great strength and muscle. This way, you won’t need a squat rack and barbell and plates which is a significant cost and takes up more space.

• A place to hang is the minimum requirement because you need a place to hang to do pulling exercises.
• Pulling exercises are the only ones that can effectively target the upper back with bodyweight exercises. (All other bodyweight exercises can be done without special equipment.)
  • More detailed info about this is in the last section of this post, titled “How do I workout my entire body with bodyweight exercises and calisthenics?””

Now, whether that hanging is done with a pull-up bar or a pair of rings is up to you. But I will say that having both is ideal. And if you had to pick just one, rings are far more useful than a pullup bar. And that’s because…

Rings Exercises Not Possible With Just a Pull-Up Bar:

Here’s a playlist of my tutorial videos for the above exercises on the rings.

Next: You must figure out how and where to install the pullup bar or rings at home.

Pullup Bar Installation Options at Home

Synopsis:

• Doorway pullup bars are the easiest to install (no drilling), but some people don’t have door-frames that can handle the tension.
• A wall-mounted or ceiling-mounted pullup bar is superior in everyway with a very high loading capacity but requires drilling.
• A dedicated pullup bar rack is equally solid, with no drilling required, but takes up the most room. However, if you get the foldable one, it can mitigate the space being an issue as you can put it away when you’re done.

Here is the detailed explanation and view of your options:

Option 1: Doorway Pullup Bars, Cantilever StyleOption 2: Doorway Pullup Bars That Go Between The DoorframeOption 3: Wall or Ceiling Mounted Pullup BarOption 4: Dedicated Pullup Bar Rack

No drilling required. Installation takes a second but you need a door frame with sturdy molding on the top. You cannot do any kipping exercises with these and the capacity is limited to 250lbs (113kg).

• Perfect Fitness Doorway Pull Up Bar is a superior rehash of the classic Iron Gym Doorway Bar. It doesn’t scuff the door frame and is very sturdy.
• The Duonamic Eleviia Doorway Pullup Bar is the perfect portable or travel-friendly option because it fits in a tiny bag.
  • ProTip: Use coupon code ANTO for 10% off
  • I have a complete review of this travel friendly system here.

Again, no drilling required. This kind of bar use massive tension to press the sides against the door frame. They are generally extremely strong but only if the wood frame can handle the tension. If your door frame is not strong enough or it’s just dry-wall, it can crack when tensioning it.

• Sportneer Pull Up Bar doesn’t require any tools (you turn the entire bar to tension it), can support up to 440lbs (200kg) and can be installed in a narrow corridor as well because it can go as wide as 37 inches (94cm). However, it cannot support 440lbs (200kg) if you are going to set it up that wide.

Drilling required into studs or concrete wall. Extremely strong (500lbs capacity). If you don’t know how to use a stud finder and drill, it would be worth it to hire a handyman.

• Rage Fitness Wall Mounted Pullup Bar can extend up to 52 inches wide (it depends how far apart your studs are) and extends 36 inches away from the wall, giving you great clearance in both directions. It can also be mounted on the ceiling if you prefer.

No drilling required. Extremely strong but takes up the most footprint. If space is an issue, get the 2nd option (KT Stand) as it is easily foldable so you could put it away when you’re not using it.

• CAP Barbell Power Rack ($120) stands 85 inches (2.1m) tall with a 500lb capacity.
• KT Pull Up Bar Stand ($345) has the same footprint but with far more benefits: Foldable in 10-seconds, can stand much taller (101 inches/2.5m) and has a 770lb capacity due to its better design, and it’s the half the weight of the power rack.

Gymnastics Rings Installation Options at Home

Here are the 3 options you have for hanging them.

Option 1: Hang from any pull up bar or outdoors.Option 2: Install hooks on your ceilingOption 3: Install a ceiling mounted bracket on your ceiling

The rings can be hung from a pull-up bar or outdoors on monkey bars at playgrounds, metal railings above balconies or stairs, tree branches, and anything else that catches your eye. The higher up, the better, but if the bar is low you could still do tons of things on them.

The rings can also be hung very high if you buy these hanger mounts and install them on your ceiling. The width will be fixed so you’re going to want to make the distance between them to be the length of your elbow tip to the tip of your middle finger (known as a “cubit”).

If you want to be able to adjust the width of the rings, you can install this ceiling mounted bracket and hang the rings from there so you’re not limited to mounts that are fixed in position.

You may need to hire a handyman to help install the hooks or bracket properly. Here is a video that explains how to install it here if you are handy with a stud finder and drill. If you have any doubts, I would say hiring a professional is well worth it as it will be a quick job for them and you’ll have peace of mind it’s done safe!

But my landlord won’t allow me to drill or install a pullup bar or rings anywhere!

Click here to see the solution

No excuses! Review Option 4 from the Pullup Installation Options here:

Option 4: Dedicated Pullup Bar RackOption 3: Wall or Ceiling Mounted Pullup BarOption 2: Doorway Pullup Bars That Go Between The DoorframeOption 1: Doorway Pullup Bars, Cantilever Style

No drilling required. Extremely strong but takes up the most footprint. If space is an issue, get the 2nd option (KT Stand) as it is easily foldable so you could put it away when you’re not using it.

• CAP Barbell Power Rack ($120) stands 85 inches (2.1m) tall with a 500lb capacity.
• KT Pull Up Bar Stand ($345) has the same footprint but with far more benefits: Foldable in 10-seconds, can stand much taller (101 inches/2.5m) and has a 770lb capacity due to its better design, and it’s half the weight of the power rack.

Recommended Equipment For Therapeutic or Mobility Purposes

Recommended Equipment For Intermediate & Advanced Trainees

How do I workout my entire body with bodyweight exercises and calisthenics?

As you can tell by now, I am not a fan of gimmicky equipment. I focus on what matters, and what you physically need is very little to train right now. So now you may be wondering, how do you workout with such little equipment? Here’s a quick primer:

Bodyweight exercises are split into a few different categories:

• Upper Body:
  • Pushing (No equipment or rings)
  • Pulling (Pull-up bar or rings)
• Lower Body
  • Squat (No Special Equipment but possibly dumbbells eventually)
  • Hip Hinges (No Equipment or Rings, but not entirely necessary)

Here is the importance of each category:

Pushing exercises such as all pushup and dip variations target the front of your body (chest, triceps, front delts) and you could do all of them with your hands on the floor or on the rings.

Pulling exercises such as rows and pullups target the opposite of pushing: the back of your body (lats, biceps, rear delts) and are essential for having strong postural muscles. There are no (effective) bodyweight exercises that strongly target the upper back without hanging.

A pullup bar allows you to work on chinup/pullup progressions. And if you hang a pair of rings, you can also do rows in a highly scalable manner that is far superior to any alternative. 

You can also do rows at home with just a bed-sheet and a door until you get more appropriate equipment.

As for squats, instead of barbell squats, you can opt for single leg squat progressions (“pistol squats”) or shrimp/skater squat progressions and if you start using a dumbbell (or any sort of weight) outstretched with your arms as a counterweight, you can build plenty of leg strength through a full range.

As for hip hinging, the ultimate hip-hinging exercise is the barbell-deadlift which targets the hamstrings, glutes and lower back and it is not directly replicable with just one bodyweight exercise. However, you can target strengthen those muscles with glute bridges, single leg glute bridges, reverse hyperextensions, and rings hamstring curls.

In the bodyweight fitness world, you can also easily do core exercises without equipment and practice inversions such as the crow pose, headstand and handstand with a wall.

What bodyweight workout program should you follow? For that, I have several options to guide you:

• Premium: Quick & Effective Routine (30 minutes) utilizes a bar or rings and is great for beginners or intermediates without much time.
• Premium: Still Rings Mastery (90 minutes; Upper/Lower/Skill Split) is a comprehensive program for rings strength and skills.
• Free: Bodyweight Training Split Routine (90 minutes; Push/Pull/Legs Split)
• Free: The r/bodyweightfitness Recommended Routine (90 minutes; Full Body)

Now that you know how simple and effective a home gym can be, it’s time to take the next step. Contact me with any questions you have or share your setup—I’d love to hear from you!

The post The Only Home Gym Equipment You’ll Ever Need (From Minimalist to Ultimate Setups) appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

There was no way around this during the migration process because all your passwords were encrypted. If you’re having an issue, make sure your email is verified. If you’re still having an issue, just contact me!

There’s a whole new brand palette!

I had never gone through a format branding process, but I did so in 2024 as a precursor to launching my new website and this is what the artist came up with that we liked.

New Primary Logo

Built from strong geometric forms and angled shapes to create balance between implied motion and stability.

Color Palette

The primary colors are cool blues which represent energy, trust, and dependability, with a subtle nod to Muscle Beach.

The secondary orange color, visually communicates my warm personality and passion while balancing the masculine and feminine hues.

Lastly, the pink is used most sparingly as a tertiary color to bring a lively and youthful feel to the palette, while also drawing attention and creating visual contrast.

You can see the use of these in my latest blog post: The Only Home Gym Equipment You’ll Ever Need (From Minimalist to Ultimate Setups)

Gradients

Gradients are used throughout the brand expression to represent transformation, growth, and variance.

They also reinforce my belief that progress isn’t always linear, but rather unique to each individual’s journey and goals.

Additionally, a noisy texture applied to the gradients is used to represent my brand’s humanness and approachability.

New Website Details

The main reason for a new website was, what started out as just a blog, outgrew its original purpose since I have a YouTube channel, premium programs and blog posts, all in one place!

I wanted the site to be as future-proofed as possible, so that I don’t have to go through this process again for a long time. So there are looping background videos on many of the main pages. This required a professional video shoot and editing to take it to this level. Lots of planning was involved just for this alone.

The Training Programs page is more visually enhanced and categorically sorted. The programs were also renamed to be problem-solution oriented.

For example, instead of just titling it as “Hamstring Flexibility, ” it’s now “Hamstrings: Alleviate Discomfort From Sitting, Lower Back Pain and Increase Range of Motion”

There’s now a “Watch My Story” Video hosted on the main page where it’s a 2-minute intro to who I am and what my philosophy is behind movement.

There are now testimonials gathered from a massive survey (not made up!).

And if someone is having an issue figuring out what program to follow, a “Find My Program” quiz was created where I will personally reply back with my nuanced recommendations.

The post Welcome to the new Antranik.org appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

How FocusMate Works

Why Does This Work So Well?

The post How to Focus 10x Better in 2024 appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

First, some really superficial talk: I have aged a lil’ bit!

Aging is interesting. Day to day, week to week, or even year to year, there isn’t much change. But when I look at videos of me from 5-10 years past, my face looks different. Nowadays I have far more grey facial and chest hair. And when I smile, I see crows-feet next to my eyes that didn’t exist so firmly before. I wonder if this is due to my more-than-average sun exposure, but when I look at my friends of similar age, they all have it too, but they aren’t out in the sun much at all, so I don’t think it’s that.

All in all, all my neighbors expressed complete shock when I told them I was turning 40 which is always a nice compliment. Most people thought I was way younger. I believe that is due to my spirit and the way I carry myself! They see me working out, playing with my dog, riding my bike, like a youngin!

And my body looks way better!

When I look at my oldest videos, my body looked undeveloped relative to now.

I had great posture and still do now but I’ve clearly put on way more muscle on my frame over the past decade. When people hug me, they sometimes note how they feel I’m built like a brick, and that’s a nice remark. It’s the simple result of thousands of strength training sessions that I’ve amassed under my belt. And the best part is, I consistently workout still do this day, especially with bodyweight exercises, the same as I did 10 years ago but with far greater discipline and knowledge base. I unfortunately have not been under 15% bodyfat for the past 4 years, but I am the strongest I have been.

Working out with friends is a rare treat!

I am lucky enough that I have 2 friends that live nearby and are motivated enough that we can have a strength training session together. It’s hard to make it work most of the time since we are all busy with different schedules but when we are able to, it’s really motivating and fun. If you can do the same, even if it’s a couple times a month, I highly recommend it. You don’t even have to be on the same level and have to be doing the same exercises to make it work. Just being in the presence of working out with another friend can be very nice to switch things up, since we workout in isolation so often.

My friend recently yelled at me to “Breathe out!” at the bottom of a pike pushup. I apparently didn’t even know I was holding my breath. This exercise went from feeling deathly difficult (with years of experience with it!!!) to a much more manageable intensity IN ONE SESSION by simply exhaling on the way back up. Absolutely incredible how little things like that could make a difference.

It’s all the more important to do online coaching where I can help spot things like that for you as well. Resting between sets allows you to catch up on life with each other as well. The socializing factor is important!

Speaking of socializing…

I firmly believe that I am very lucky to live on the street that I do because almost everybody owns a dog which leads to us running into each other everyday. While we usually don’t chat far beyond the topic of our fur-babies, they all know my wife is pregnant and can’t wait to see him! (Surprise, it’s a boy!)

I also think it’s important to know your neighbors in the event of a local catastrophe such as a major earthquake. The police/fire department would be overwhelmed, but it’s neighbors like me (and hopefully you) who will think to check up on those near you in such an event.

And my dog plays freely with the neighbors dogs quite regularly. The video on the right shows a sample of what that’s like. In fact, we often text each other asking if our “puppies” want to come out and play. It’s all very wholesome and also entertaining. I think it’s pretty rare to see neighborhood dogs playing like this in the big cities, but you know… I’m not shy and I really believe that I’ve been instrumental in helping to make my street as wholesome as possible. (Seriously, “Be the change you want to see in the world” is a real thing.)

And with a baby on the way, I now think of everything through the lens of raising a child.

Decades ago it was very common for kids to go out and spontaneously play with the neighbors kids. Now it is far more formalized where play time is scheduled and planned. At least that’s how it is in LA (and likely all major cities). In most other countries, that is still the norm, where your kids can safely be out from 2pm and they’ll be back for dinner time.

In fact, that’s why one of my best friends moved back to Armenia. He noticed the way of life here is completely alien relative to the way he was raised. A lot of people are afraid for the safety of their children from all the potential weirdos. Whereas now, in Armenia (and most other countries I presume), children are not segregated, but enmeshed and embraced in the society.

Back to training… I’m happy to say that…

• I consistently strength train 2-3x/week and focus on weighted chinups with ~45lbs and decline, deficit pike pushups. These exercises never feel “easy” unfortunately, but I love a good challenge because progressive overload is an epic game.
• I ride my bicycle nearly everyday often for quick errands which helps add a sense of adventure to the typical car-centric life of LA. There’s nothing quite like feeling the wind, negotiating through traffic and experiencing the city at 12-15mph.
• I still regularly attend a yoga class 2-4x/month. The meditative euphoria afterwards is a beautiful experience.
• I play Ultimate Frisbee 1-2x/week consistently which is one of the funnest things I’ve discovered in the past year and wish I knew more about this when I was younger.
  • I get to sprint, throw, defend and catch and express all my athleticism in a jam packed 1-2 hour session.
  • It also exposed my weakness of being able to accelerate and sprint which has improved a lot by deliberately forcing more hip flexion and and knee extension (ie., raising my knees much higher and throwing the foot more forward).
  • The park we play at is also immaculate and I play barefooted which I absolutely love having the opportunity to since it’s rare to do in the big city.

As a result of all this, I’m overall very spry and more fit than any other 40 year old I know and very grateful for that. And while we’re on this topic of not looking your age… Can we take a moment to appreciate the following tweet that turned into a righteous meme?

Truth be told, it is difficult to train frequently, consistently, but adjusting the volume accordingly allows me to still achieve great results!

I gotta be real with you, strength training 3x a week consistently is quite difficult or impossible many times throughout the year. On weeks where I’ve only gotten one session in and I will only have time for 1 more session, I will do way more volume on that 2nd session, on both the compound and isolation exercises. This has resulted in incredibly great aesthetic and strength results.

The only issue is it requires a lot more time (up to 2 hours!), but this is still far less time than having to set aside the time for an entire 3rd session.

The reality is, even if you only had enough time to strength train only ONCE a week, you could technically still make great gains IF you put in a hell of a lot more effort and did more sets in that singular session. (This isn’t possible for the faint of heart or beginners, however. You’d need to have the work capacity to even be able to do that.)

I think it is an art form to be able to juggle strength training, cardio, yoga, sports all in a week, but it is stuff I enjoy tremendously, so I find ways to make it work. It’s a testament to the quote, “When there’s a will, there’s a way!”

Oh and my testosterone is apparently the equivalent of a 18 year old male!

During my annual check I wanted my testosterone checked and the report came back that my Total Testosterone level is 1250ng/dl, which is insanely high. Most 40 year olds have only 200-500ng/dl. In my discord community support group I was asked why I think it’s so high and here is the list I came up with for what probably contributes to it all:

1. Strength training consistently
2. Avoid having a high body fat percentage (this is massive and probably why most men have low T, cause 70%+ are overweight)
3. Drink alcohol very rarely (it doesn’t affect me positively in any way)
4. Have good coping mechanisms for stress as outlined in my mindful motivation series.
5. Sleep 7-8hrs consistently (this will change soon when I become a dad)
   • Terrible Fun fact! testosterone drops by 40% for fathers in the first 6 months of a new child (RIP me)
6. I get sun every single day, even in the crazy heat since I have to walk the dog 2-3x/day) so my Vitamin D levels are good.
7. Not sure if this has any effect but I play Ultimate Frisbee barefoot on the grass 1-2x/week.
8. I try to prioritize protein and keep carbs low, not keto-low anymore but I’m really mindful about it since carby foods have low nutrient density and diets high in sugar and fat drop T levels.
9. I donate blood and plasma 1-3x/year now. There’s a place that pays me to donate plasma as well)… I started doing this because ALL OF US ingest 5 grams of plastic per week. (About a credit card size worth!) As a result, our bodies are overloaded with microplastics (which mimic estrogen and destroy T) and PFAS/PFOAS (forever chemicals) that bind to our red blood cells permanently. The only way to remove these hormone-mimickers from our blood is to literally donate it so your body makes new unadulterated ones. Plus, people who donate blood unequivocally live 8% longer (even when accounting for the health-effect that donors tend to be healthier people).
10. More on plastics, I try to reduce the amount of plastic touching my food: No plastic bowls, cups, never put warm/hot food in plastic food containers, etc. I try to avoid drinks served in plastic bottles as well (we know BPA leeches into the water, and even if the bottle is BPA-free, there’s analogs to that shit that still leeches into the water.) You could read more about the microplastic crisis on our bodies here.

How has my lens of nutrition and diet evolved?

My diet has matured in quite some ways over the past few years, mostly due to my wife being very fastidious in regards to eating better since she was diagnosed with MS. Plus, she’s a foodie and I like cooking which has turned me into a gourmand. (This is a new word I learned: A gourmand is a connoisseur of good food.)

My diet has matured from Counting Calories -> Intermittent Fasting -> Ketogenic Diet -> Organic, Animal-Based Diet with Intermittent Fasting

• Counting calories helped me understand how much food I’m actually eating.
• Intermittent fasting helps me understand what true-hunger feels like.
• The ketogenic diet helped me understand the macronutrient ratios (the ratio of carbs, protein, fat) of all foods.

Notice how none of the above include anything about food quality. But the past few years has been a gradual refinement in exactly that front.

1. I avoid seed-oils just in case that stuff is actually, seriously bad for you and only use Avocado Oil for high-temps and Extra Virgin Olive Oil for salads or light-cooking.
   • Terrible Fun Fact: Most avocado oil brands are RANCID and NOT avocado oil at all! Only 2 brands (Chosen Foods and Marianne’s Avocado Oil) are actually 100% avocado oil.
2. I buy only grass-fed beef and organically fed pasture raised chicken for both ethical and health reasons.
3. I buy organic vegetables and fruits. Especially strawberries and berries and any vegetables that grow in the ground (e.g., potatoes, onions, carrots) because cause the soil gets literally soaked with pesticides (which are also estrogen-hormone-mimickers).
4. I know it’s more expensive to do the above and I avoided it for a long time because of that, but I came to realize a lot of that is a remnant from the poverty college days and that I could actually do it. Reality is we still have an over-abundance of food. (I touch on that in my previous blog post here.)

I read the ingredients label and usually try to avoid buying things made of questionable, toxic ingredients (such as food dyes and gums). Sure, I will occasionally eat out and treat myself to something “bad” for my own pleasure but overall, that’s far more infrequent.

Every time I shop, I make a statement with my wallet by supporting only products made with organic and unquestionable ingredients. Be aware of your own power!

For example, my wife likes oat milk, but almost all oat milk also includes canola oil and various gums. We’ve found that Trader Joes is the only one that sells Oat Milk whose ingredients are only “Water, Oats.” These things oddly cost more, but it is what it is.

But, something I’d like to note is that in regards to aesthetics: even if you do intermittent fasting and eat only organic foods, pasture raised eggs and grass fed beef… calories are still the main predictor of whether you’re going to be lean or not.

I’m also much better at cooking things at home quickly…

Cooking is a form of art I love a lot.

But it doesn’t have to be difficult.

Following a recipe is generally an extremely easy thing to do.

Here’s my system that’s working well for me:

• I have a “Recipes” folder in my Notes app.
• Anytime I try a new recipe, I put the link to the recipe, try it, and if I like it, I expand upon it with whatever notes/modifications I learned.
• If I don’t think I’ll make it again, I delete it.
• I now have 100 recipes to choose from anytime I want to figure out what I’m going to go grocery shopping for my next few meals.

Warning: Most of the cool looking, visually flashy, Instagram/Tik-Tok food recipes are often absolutely terrible when you try them out. Sad story bro.

Some important things I’ve learned thus far at the turn of the decade…

The things that matter the most are your health, family, friends and good food. Everything else pretty much pales in comparison.

Without good health, everything else falls apart. Without family and friends, living in isolation is a recipe for disaster. And good food is often what brings everyone together.

Build lasting friendships with quality people and maintain them

Keep a close circle of long standing friends and hold those relationships true and dear. But only the ones that matter. Remember that you are the average of the 4-5 people you hang out with the most. If they’re all dead-beats, you will get dragged down to their level or get sucked into their shenanigans.

ALL relationships require maintenance

You can’t be surprised friends don’t contact you anymore and relationships have fell by the wayside if they were always the ones initiating the contact to catch up but you never did. You have to maintain relationships. This becomes all the more important the older you get since it becomes only harder and harder to make new friends as you get older.

Own your problems

My wife and I have been living together for over 6 years now (married for 1) and in the first couple years, when my wife would point out negative habits or behaviors of mine, my initial reaction was often defensiveness. But everything changed when I realized: she’s not nagging. She’s pointing out things to help me be conscious of so I can understand myself and my habits better. Switching from a defensive attitude to surrendering with a listeners attitude profoundly increased the symbiotic nature of our relationship. Seriously recommend it. It doesn’t mean you have to be a push-over and say yes for everything. It just means don’t be afraid to acknowledge and OWN your problems.

Prioritize investing in experiences, not things

Taking a day trip somewhere, going to a concert, or having a dinner with close friends is generally going to be a much more enjoyable time than buying something material. The moments and memories you create with friends and family are the best use of your time and money.

Always get uncomfortable

I always say life starts at the end of our comfort zone. And this modern world is nothing but comfort. We live in climate-controlled homes. Even when we push ourselves with exercise, we often do it in a clean and air-conditioned environment. But challenges are crucial to health. From reading “The Comfort Crisis” by Michael Easter, it’s become all the more apparent that you have to experience difficult shit and push your limits to really feel alive. Oddly enough, we used to be faced with real, physical fears all the time and we were okay with it because we had no choice. Now the fears we are faced with are all mental and it stops us in our tracks. One thing that’s helped make this blatantly obvious is what happens when you take a cold shower. The point is, don’t run away from challenges and discomfort. Embrace them and face them head-on! Reintroduce the metaphorical tigers back into your life that you used to live in fear of.

Day Dreaming is key to relaxation and creativity: NOT Instagram.

Do you know why showers and shower thoughts are where you gain clarity and inspiration? Showers are the LAST FRONTIER of unadulterated time we spend without distraction from screens. And during a shower your body is preoccupied doing something that’s become so automatic that it doesn’t have to THINK about what to do. So with your body on cruise-control, and your mind able to day dream, it uncovers things that it was struggling to uncover all day with the incessant distractions. Other than showers: dish washing, strength training, dog walks and bicycling also help inspire me. What helps you get into a flow state?

I’m going through a branding process and building a new website…

You’ve probably noticed I haven’t produced as much content this year. Sure, the baby is on the way and that’s taking my time in preparation for this. But the reality is I have been doing a ton of work on the back-end because a massive restructuring is coming.

My brother (who I adore so much) is working with me to help me lay a new foundation for things that I never took the time to do since I was juggling everything A-Z.

I’ve never gone through a formal branding process before and it’s been very interesting trying to figure out who I am, what makes me unique and how I want to show myself to the outside world. I will be using that info to have a new logo, relaunch a whole new website, release my SYSTEM for health and revamp my premium programs.

I’ve been documenting all the processes involved with ALL aspects of this business using Notion so that I could on-board any employee in the future and have them quickly get up to speed on how to tackle projects, tasks and understand how all the systems work (for e-mails, website, video production, social media, etc).

Juggling so many things is usually daunting but it’s gotten much easier by not only breaking them down into baby steps, but creating “milestones” and deadlines (or time limits) for each of those steps to help me speed along.

The good news is, even after all these self-reflections, the most important thing I need to do is JUST BE MYSELF, QUIRKS AND ALL. Authenticity is of utmost importance here and that, in and of itself will always help to set me apart from most others.

And last but not least, we’re having a baby!

My wife and I got married exactly a year ago, right around my birthday. A few months later we started trying to make a baby and she got pregnant in the first month! At the time of this writing, she is due any day now.

I don’t know how many people are familiar with “I Love Lucy” but when I found out we were having a kid, I couldn’t help but to think of this heartfelt episode where Lucy has trouble breaking the news to her husband but eventually does in an ingenious way in his show and when Ricky finds out, he sings an amazing “We’re having a baby” song. You could watch that scene here.

Anyway, that’s super cheesy stuff nobody cares about probably but I had to say it cause I’m a dork.

And now… my algorithm has been inundated with tips for child-birth and child-care. And one of the most important things I’ve learned is the importance of avoiding screens for them for the first 18 months at a minimum. And even after that it needs to be very limited.

Children who had screen time in the first year are well known to have delayed development in communication and problem solving skills when they’re toddlers. Not just that, but it ends up murdering their own creativity and ability to handle boredom which results in terrible tantrums and impulse control.

Even modern “kids” shows are overly stimulating and created to be ultra-addicting.

When I think about the shows I grew up on: Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers… these were slow pace, with just 1 or 2 camera angles involving minimal scene changes.

Contrast that with the “Cocomelon” kids show, which changes the scene every 2-6 seconds. It’s like a nonstop movie-trailer and it’s done on purpose to hook them and when they are hooked, tantrums start when you pull them away from it. It’s literally drugs to them. It also destroys their ability to handle boredom. In a world where even adults have an issue with knowing what to do with themselves if they’re bored for 2 seconds, imagine how bad it is for a child whose brain is still undeveloped. It messes up their ability to handle emotions, boredom, impulse control and worse, their own creativity.

Just imagine, you know full well that Instagram fucks you up after 10 minutes. And that’s you: an adult. Imagine how much overly-stimulating content messes with children.

Apparently there is no perfect way to parent but there is one thing I can do…

And that is to be present, engaged and give him my full attention when it’s time to. Striving for perfection is not the right answer. I must strive to be the provider and leader for my family. Families need leaders and a father is just as important as a mother, for different reasons. It’s about damn time and I am all for it.

And funny enough, when we celebrated my birthday recently, it was a lot more emotional and viewing it from the perspective of my mother and why she cherishes that day so much.

In conclusion…

The most precious things in life are health, family, friends, the simple pleasures of good food and practicing presence. Embrace challenges, cherish your uniqueness, and always keep learning. With authenticity and the courage to step out of your comfort zone is when we experience the most beautiful moments in life.

Cheers to you for making it toward the end of this and the adventures that await my wife and I in the next chapter involving parenthood.

• Please let me know what you think of this post by contacting me!
• Join my free online community and support group of like minded individuals!

Last Fun Fact: This was hurriedly published while my wife is currently in labor next to me already. Dad bod here I come! (JK!)

Update: I HAVE A SON.

If you’re on Instagram, you could see Niko’s new-born butt and my thoughts in detail here.

The post NEW CHAPTER: I’m Now 40 with a Baby DUE ANY MINUTE NOW appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

You won’t believe these two stories I’m about to tell you.

STORY#1: A Figgy Tale

There’s a fig tree that’s on both my property and my neighbors. There’s no fence-line so it’s really both of ours. And one day, while I was picking some fresh figs I see my neighbor just got home from work.

This neighbor is super quiet normally and as she’s walking towards me, I was wondering if she was annoyed that I’m “stealing” her figs. And I didn’t want to be a grinch so I show her my bowl and say, “Hey these are ready, do you want some?

She replies, “What are they?”

I was flabbergasted.

I tell her they are figs! And she said, “What’s that?” Internally I was screaming how a 30-something year old adult doesn’t know what a fig is. And worse, in the end she didn’t even want to try one.

STORY #2: Mulberries at Dawn, Mulberries Gone

There’s a giant, 25 year old mulberry tree a couple houses down in front of my neighbors yard. This is what such a tree looks like:

Mulberries are like blackberries, but even better because they’re less sour and quite rare in the USA:

And when they are ripe, they fall off the tree easily, even from a strong breeze or shake.

One morning I was walking my dog at 6am and noticed the sidewalk in front of this house was stained all over the ground. I look up and realize there’s hundreds upon hundreds of mulberries ready for picking!

So after I walked my dog, I grabbed a giant mixing bowl from home and started picking off as many fruits as I could. I got a lot but there were still hundreds more. Nevertheless, I was elated!

Later that day, I hear chainsaws going off for an hour. Eventually I walk out to see what’s happening and see a professional tree-cutting-service trimming the mulberry tree!!!

I was so sad and confused as to how or why someone could do such a thing when that poor tree worked all year to produce these rare and delicious fruits!

So the next day I see the neighbor that owned the tree… and I was like, “You guys chopped this tree down huh?”

He goes, “Yea thank god… it was making a MESS!”

What the actual fuck! ‍♂️ People pay $6-8 for a small bowl of berries at the store. And these were grown, naturally organic with no pesticides and they chopped it down because it was making a mess!?

I wish I was making these stories up.

But I share them because it shows how disconnected some people are from nature. I grew up as an Armenian, where it was always the norm to have fruit trees in your yard so all these incidences were hard to believe.

The irony is there’s an overabundance of food and Americans struggle with over-eating so much but they don’t even recognize simple fruits? Do they know where food comes from… or what even is food?

Before I segway, here’s a relevant meme:

If I told you to buy only:

• Organic fruits and vegetables.
• Pasture raised chickens and eggs.
• Grass fed and grass-finished beef.

Most people would say that’s too expensive. Or that they can’t afford it. I know I did for a long time.

I understand that might mean you could buy less food to feed your family but have you tried to make the switch to see if it’s actually doable?

In a country where 70% are overweight and obese. Would your family actually start going hungry if you bought only the highest quality food items?

Or would you still have enough and maybe, quite possibly actually respect the food you bought far more because you value it more? Maybe it would even be not only healthier, but a more pleasurable of an experience.

Things to think about, my friends. Some literal food for thought.

And I admire that you made it all the way. Feel free to contact me with your thoughts on these absurd stories if you wish! And if you’re interested in more of my content on food and nutrition, check out my Nutrition Index on my website!

These stories and more were recently discussed in “Antranik’s Inner Circle.”

This is my free support group that is evolving to be a fantastic, supportive community where you can surround yourself with like-minded folks trying to better themselves in all the ways. I’d love to have you! Use this invite link to get in!

The post Are You as Disconnected from Your Food as My Neighbors? appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

How To View Reddit Using Google Cache

In the google search results, click the 3-dots next to the link and you’ll get googles cached copy. If you’re not sure what to look for, look at this 5 second video demonstration.

How To View Google Cache on Mobile, Android and iOS

Look at the very end of this link and you will see a link to example.com:

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://example.com/

Replacing the “https://example.com” with the link you want to see will spit out the cached version, so here’s my recommendation:

1. Copy and paste the following URL into your Notes app to save it:

   • http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:

2. Whenever you stumble upon a reddit link you want to view, copy the link to the reddit post.
3. Switch back to your notes app and paste it to the end of that URL.
4. Make sure there are no spaces.
5. Copy the entire link and paste it into your browser and voila! You can see the cached version.

How To View Google Cache on Chrome Browsers

1. Copy the reddit link you want to view.
2. Type cache: and paste the link into the address bar without leaving a space.
3. Press Enter and you’ll see the cached version from Google.

How to Use Wayback Machine for Reddit

The WayBack Machine is similar to Googles cache but it also keeps snapshots of webpages that have disappeared entirely off the Internet.

1. Go to archive.org 
2. Paste the link you want to see and press enter.
3. Click on the latest date to see the latest version they have saved.

The post How To View Reddit During The Blackout appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

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The post How To Do 10+ Pullups In a Row appeared first on Antranik Kizirian.

My Previous History with Cold Exposure: It was something I was doing for 10 years, for fun, in the ocean, before it was a “thing.”

When I lived close to the beach from 2008 to 2018, I used to go into the cold ocean multiple times a week, far before Wim Hof, Joe Rogan or Andrew Huberman started ranting and raving about it. So, I’m not a newbie when it comes to going into really cold water, however, why I did it was very different than the reasons cite now.

I would go in the ocean because it was exciting and loved the connection to nature it provided. I loved getting in sync with the waves, diving underneath them to get beyond the break, float and enjoy those pure moments. Each time I’d enter, I would imagine myself connecting to the entire ocean and all the life in it. It was always extremely invigorating and also awesome seeing prehistoric-looking pelicans soaring above and little bait fish flicking about the surface. I personally loved how resilient it made me to the cold in general. People would be on shore, in their sweaters and beanies, saying they were cold just looking at me as I would be walking out in my speedo. Meanwhile, I would be super energized and happy to be alive. I believe it was one of the major reasons I would catch a cold no more than once every 5 years.

When I moved away from the beach 5 years ago, that consistent practice fell by the wayside and I totally didn’t even think to do ice baths or cold showers at home. I would take a cold shower occasionally in the summer to cool off but recently when I discovered the crazy benefits from the most recent studies and I thought to myself, well, why not do this at home? Granted, cold showers are not even remotely as interesting or fun as dancing in the free, open ocean. It’s more like the sterile, safe, captivity version of seeing wildlife in the zoo. But I said what the hell, I’ll do it and see how I feel. I will share my experience with it but first let’s talk about those proven benefits, shall we?

What are the benefits of shocking your body with cold water?

• Better mood: The downright most insane benefit that convinced me to do it is the fact it significantly increases dopamine levels. Dopamine is the chemical responsible for your happiness, mood, focus, and goal-directed behavior. And it doesn’t just elevate it slightly. It elevates dopamine levels by 250% and then more importantly, it stays elevated throughout the day. There is not an antidepressant drug in the world that can do this. Many drugs can spike dopamine, but then it returns to baseline soon afterwards, or worse, it depletes it and you end up feeling worse afterwards unless you continually take the drug. This is its biggest benefit, by far.
• Increased productivity: Related to this, in the same study they found there is also a 530% increase in adrenaline (due to it signaling the fight-or-flight response) which ends up increasing energy and focus well after the cold shower is done because these levels stay elevated for hours afterwards as well.
• Improved metabolism: A major source of heat within the body is cellular respiration which are the metabolic processes happening in every cell of your body. These chemical reasons are not very efficient. When glucose releases energy, 60% of it is given off as heat which is why your core body temperature is nearly 100°F, just like a car engine that’s burning gasoline or an incandescent light bulb being fed electricity. Most of that energy is wasted and given off as heat which is why car engines and light bulbs are very hot. So when your body is cold and it needs to heat itself up, it ramps up all the metabolic processes and that increases the amount of calories burned. 
• Improved insulin resistance and sensitivity: Cold water immersion seems to reduce and/or transform fat tissue, as well as reduce insulin resistance and improve insulin sensitivity. 
  • Brown fat is what breaks down sugar and fat to create heat and maintain body temperature. White fat stores energy. Cold temperatures activate brown fat, which leads to these various metabolic changes in the body.
• Faster Recovery: Cold water immersion speeds up recovery. This can be most useful during multi-day sports competitions where you’ve already done all your training and just need to be your best day after day.

What are the drawbacks?

• Avoid doing it right after strength training: Doing cold water immersion after resistance training inhibits muscular hypertrophy (muscle mass growth). Since the cold exposure reduces the inflammation and helps you recover faster, it does so at the expense of you being able to grow your muscles. So if you’re trying to increase your muscle mass, don’t do this cold exposure for at least 4-6 hours until after training. (Side note: the study shows you still gain strength, but hypertrophy and strength go hand in hand in the long run.)
• Ice baths are often inconvenient or impractical: The lack of accessibility makes them impractical for many people. Cold showers, however, are far more practical, but if you live somewhere hot, the shower might not be very cold.
• Discomfort: This is an obvious one, in that it obviously feels uncomfortable and it takes a will power to roll out of a warm bed and go straight into a cold shower. However, that exposure to discomfort builds tolerance for it the rest of the time.

A note on why discomfort is good for you

We live in a society now that has access to the most comfort than ever before in history. So people think, “I don’t want to feel cold” and keep the heat on high and try to live in a perfect, temperature controlled environment. But that results in a lowered ability to buffer that cold. So what ends up happening is that what used to be a tolerable temperature, feels colder to them because they have narrowed the window of what they could deal with comfortably. So now, the world is actually MORE stressful for them.

When we seek comfort, we don’t find long-term happiness. We actually, progressively, take away our resilience from the world and take away our ability to maintain our happiness.  When we seek some level of struggle, something that forces us to our edge of adaptation, then we grow in a way that allows us to better sustain our happiness. And best of all, when we push ourselves to the limit, we learn something about ourselves on a deeper level.

So, how cold does the water need to be?

• You want it to be as cold as you could handle. Everyone is different and in the beginning you want to start with warmer exposure and as you get used to it over the sessions, you could experiment with lower temperatures. 
• Recommendations generally range from 40°F to 60°F (4 to 16°C).
• For some people, 60°F (16°C) water is going to be the limits of what they can handle for those few minutes.
• For others, 40°F (4°C) is going to be what they can handle.
• Eventually, you will get used to the 60°F and can handle colder water. 

For how long should you do it?

• Minimum one minute per session to start. As for the maximum, no more than 5 minutes is needed if it’s cold enough at the limits of what you could handle.
• Susanna Soeberg who has studied this extensively says the minimum threshold for the benefits is 11 minutes total per week, divided into 2-4 days. I should clarify that most of these studies are done with ice baths. If a shower is warmer, then a bit longer is likely necessary. 

So, should you do an ice bath or cold shower?

Technically, the most effective is an icy cold plunge with your whole body submerged and requires the least time because it’s going to be the coldest. But most people don’t have access to such a tub so the second best option is the cold shower and that’s the most accessible, practical thing for most people.

From my experience, a cold shower is more shocking to me because I’m constantly moving around and exposing cold water to different parts of my body. Whereas if I go in the tub, I could just focus on my breathing and it’s far easier to get into a meditative headspace. I think why people like it a lot is it forces you to get into a meditative state, which is a rare experience in this day and age. (It’s also unnecessary to do such a thing if the reason you’re doing it is to meditate. You could meditate without subjecting yourself to extreme acts.)

What are the pros and cons of doing an ice bath at home?

• Pros:
  • It’s most likely going to be much, much colder than a shower.
  • It’s a far more of a meditative process since you could just sit in the tub and stay still.

• Cons:
  • Requires a bath tub or space for a cold plunge-tub.
  • Requires a ton of water and takes a long time to fill up (15 minutes or more).
  • Requires ice, and lots of it (20lbs or more), which can be very expensive to do regularly. And then more time for the ice to cool down that water.
  • Dedicated cold plunge tubs are very expensive: Ranging between $3000 and $12000. (Read about the chest freezer alternative in the next sections!)

How much ice is required to add to a bath tub?

In general, 20lbs of ice will drop the temperature by 15°F (9°C). So depending on how warm your water is to begin with, determines how much ice you need to get it to that 60°F level or lower. 

Some people just buy disposable water bottles and keep them in the freezer. A standard water bottle is 16.9oz which is about 1.1lbs so 20 of them could help lower the by that 15°F if you could fit them in the freezer. Some people buy a chest-freezer just for this purpose and store 20-40lbs of reusable ice packs.

Inexpensive Cold Tub Alternative: Buy a Chest Freezer Dedicated For This

Many people buy a large chest freezer and use that solely for their cold plunge. A 7 cubic foot one like this is only $300 and most people fit inside it by sitting in it (not laying back). It costs a fraction of the price of a fancy looking tub. This video goes over how to convert a chest freezer into an ice bath. All he does is fill the gaps with silicone sealant (one time thing to do), fill the water with a dedicated in-line water filter, and add hydrogen peroxide to keep the water clean. He also adds a timer to it so it automatically turns on for only 2 hours overnight so it’s ready in the morning. Every 3 weeks he drains it (by unplugging the drain hole) and refills it with clean water later on. 

When should you avoid cold water immersion?

• Do not do this immediately after strength training, as mentioned before, it reduces hypertrophy effects, so it is better to do it before or wait at least 6-8 hours or more after training.
• Do not do this before bed as it will make it harder to fall asleep since it energizes and wakes up the body.

Okay, what about hot water, sauna, steam room?

• Taking a hot shower or sauna/steam room before going to bed will help you sleep better. Your body falls asleep best when the core body temperature is dropping. So you might be wondering why would you want to heat up your body before bed? Well it’s really nifty actually: When you expose your body to heat, your body does everything in its power to cool your body down (e.g., blood vessels dilate, respiratory rate increases causing heat to be expelled from your breath) and your core body temperature ends up dropping far more than it would’ve without that heat exposure.

What do I do and what’s been my experience?

• I don’t have space for a cold tub or chest freezer in my apartment. I do have a bath tub, but it takes a long time to fill up and so I prefer to do a cold shower.
• I do it first thing in the morning, immediately after I roll out of bed. This way the water is coldest and it doesn’t interfere with any strength training I do later on.
• I will also usually do it after any intense cardio or sport if I want to play again the next day.
• I choose to do it every other day. I started with 1 minute at first and quickly made it 2 minutes. Nowadays, 3 minutes is my baseline which helps me reach my goal of 11 minutes a week very easily. The amount of time spent (a few minutes) is almost nothing. Procrastinating by making tea or coffee instead takes way longer than this little experience.
• If I’m dreading going in, I will do the Wim Hof “fire breathing” method: Inhale sharply and powerfully through the nose and let it go out the mouth naturally, 30-40 times. It is supposed to warm you up and make it easier to tolerate the cold and it definitely works.
• Right before getting in, I will have my phone nearby and tell Siri to set a timer for 3 minutes.
• I feel very happy afterwards. I not only feel energized, focused and productive but cheery. The colder it is, the more I seem to feel exquisite afterwards and ready for life.

How do you recommend we start going about it?

Keep it simple:

• Do it every other day.
• For at least one minute.
• First thing in the morning.
• As cold as you could handle.

Overall, don’t overthink it. Start with the shower, as cold as you could handle safely and don’t overcomplicate it with the tub and ice in the early stages. 

In conclusion, I hope this article was helpful for you to understand the benefits, drawbacks, when best to do it (before strength training), when to avoid it (before bedtime) and how to go about it, whether it’s a tub with ice, a chest-freezer or just a plain-jane cold shower! It has been an extremely easy thing to incorporate in my life and is always a very invigorating experience that I never regret. Even though it’s nothing like getting in the dynamic ocean, it’s an extremely methodical and straight forward, efficient thing to do, which I like because it reduces all the excuses to avoid it.

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