My coach, Ben Pakulski, introduced me to the Meat & Nuts Breakfast in prep for the 2011 WBFF World Championships & I can testify to increased metal focus, less craving and more focused energy. Not to mention 4% bodyfat.

Why is the rotating meat and nuts combination so effective?

1) The meat allows for a gradual rise in blood sugar.

2) The nuts provide a great dose of healthy smart fats that allow blood sugar to remain stable for a longer period of time.

3) Reduces food sensitivities that are known to increase cortisol in people. It’s very common for individuals to have allergies to beef, eggs, whey, casein, tuna and oatmeal, the typical bodybuilding staples.

In short, breakfast IS the most important meal of the day – what you eat for breakfast determines your entire neurotransmitter production for that day.

Personally, it’s quite funny to see the reaction of my friends when the visit me in the morning and watch me cook some form of meat for breakfast but literally everyone who has made the switch has reported the same benefits of increased energy, more mental focus and fullness.

Multiple studies on employee productivity or on children’s attention patterns have demonstrated that a high-protein diet breakfast not only impacts on the energy and productivity levels of morning till noon but also extends its positive effects into the late afternoon.

 Here is the Meat & Nuts Breakfast over the next five days:

Day 1

1-2 buffalo meat patties
1 handful of macadamia nuts

Day 2

1 large venison steak
1 handful of cashew nuts

Day 3

1-2 lean turkey burgers
1 handful of almonds

Day 4

salmon omelet
1 handful of walnuts

Day 5

2 lean ground beef patties
1 handful of Brazil nuts

Day 6

3 slices of turkey bacon
1 handful of hazelnuts

***COOKING TIP: I usually add some coconut oil, 2 whole organic eggs and a massive handful of spinach and mix all together in a frying pan. It takes less than five minutes to prepare.  Plus, I usually have 5 grams of high quality fish oil to mitigate the insulin response longer.

***The BEST Recipe Resource: The Muscle Cook, Dave Ruel has the best bodybuilding cookbook online and it includes dozens of amazing meals like Sun Dried Tomato Salmon, Salmon Burgers, Turkey Bacon Wrapped Scallops, Buffalo (Bison) Burgers, London Broil, Jamaican Pork and so many more that you use for the rotating meat and nuts breakfast. Just add the nuts to Dave’s recipe and your set. And for this week only, you can buy Dave’s nutrition system, Anabolic Cooking for $40 Off.

What if you’re allergic to nuts?

Charles recommends you add a portion of the following low-glycemic/low-fructose fruits with your breakfast:

Apricots
Avocadoes
Blackberries
Blueberries
Grapefruit
Loganberries
Nectarines
Olives
Papayas
Peaches
Plums
Raspberries
Strawberries

The rule of thumb when eating fruits is to aim for organic, especially for strawberries, as they are one of the most sprayed crops in the world.

What if you’re skinny and trying to build muscle?

If you’re still wear extra small clothes and having a hard time gaining muscle, adding 1-2 cups of carbohydrates to your breakfast will help you gain weight as prescribed in No Nonsense Muscle Building. For anyone looking to lose fat or optimize leanness, the rotating meat and nuts breakfast is a must try dietary strategy.  Also, it’s not critical to rotate around six different meals a week – I usually rotate two different combos a week and every month I switch up the sources to two different combos.

I’ve been preaching the rotating meat and nuts breakfast since Live Large LIVE so for those of you who are “believers”, share how this new dietary strategy made a difference below!

I love hearing your feedback.

Vince Del Monte

We asked Charles, “What has been the greatest and worst thing you’ve seen in the fitness industry since you started 32 years ago?”  His reply was, “The Internet.”  It’s great because of all the free information but horrible because more than 95% of the information in completely wrong.  This got me reflecting…. 

My personal journey has cycled through three phases of focus – Body, Business and Brain.  From 1998-2006 I was all about the Brain (University, certifications, courses etc), then from 2006-2010 I really dedicated myself to learning the business side of the industry, then in 2011 I was all about the Body and competed four times. Now in 2012 I’m back to the Brain and spending a fortune on new courses and getting around the smartest people I can find.  In my experience, it’s hard to focus on Business, Body, Brain all at once because you spread yourself thin.  I prefer to put all my eggs in one basket, via cycles, and get the most out of each one.  Focusing on one speciality at a time has proven successful for me.   I share this because Charles superiority of knowledge exposed how little I know (in the big picture) and although I know more than 97% of the population that’s not good enough for my standards. If you’re growing, you’re dying.

I’m so grateful for people like Charles who have dedicated their life to being extraordinary and after spending five days, I can’t image where I’ll be (and where you’ll be if you stick along for the ride) after an entire year of more courses and classes.

Alright, here are the takeaways from the last day! And here’s a pic of the amazing new friends I met from Canada, United Statues, Finland, Italy and Australia:

1. Jumping your meals from five to six a day makes a big improvement in hypertrophy. Jumping your meals from six to seven meals a day makes a HUGE improvement.  Seven is your magic number skinny guys!  There’s your next experiment!

2. A quote from Henry Ford, “Everyone who works for me is smarter than me.”  How does this apply to your life?

3. Consistency in eating patterns is another MEGA limiting factor in muscle growth and lack of fat loss.

4. The two sports that abuse steroids the most? Tennis and cycling.  I’ll give you a simple way to spot steroids in sports.  If there is money there is juice. Hockey has the least amount of juice of any sport. The Kenyan runners are legit. It’s hard to detect steroids in other sports because the athletes don’t lift weights. If bodybuilders didn’t lift weights you would never know they are on steroids.

5. Carnitine is the number one under utilized supplement in bodybuilding.

6. Charles fertility boosting stack for men: 10g of carnitine (various types), 6 caps of Uber C (his specific Vitamin C product) and 180mg of zinc.  Carnitine will increase your sperm volume and the Vitamin C will make them swim!

7. If you struggle to make the right diet decision ask yourself, “Would a caveman eat it?”  Another way to look at this is, “If it doesn’t fly, swim, or walk or it isn’t green, don’t eat it.” This rule helps many people learn basic nutrition principles instead of following a rigid diet.

8. The most UNDER UTILIZED tool in athletics?  A professional stretcher.  His tip for guys who can’t find the motivation to stretch? Hire a really attractive girl to come stretch you and you’ll become compliant to the program no problem! Or join a stretching class with all females (for you single guys).

9. Infra red saunas are good for muscle growth because they boost growth hormone.

10. On a scale of 1 to 10, Charles rates a foam roller a minus 27 for being effective!  In his opinion, it’s a complete waste of time because most foam rollers are not hard enough to be effective.  Spending $100-200 on a ART therapist is the equivalent of 200 foam roller sessions. To understand his perspective, Charles is all about EFFICIENCY.  So, you’re not a bad person if you use a foam roller, he just feels it’s low on the chain for effectiveness.

11. Stretching 20 minutes a day for five times a week is useless and leads to no gains. For those who stretch 20 minutes a day. Has your flexibility REALLY improved?

12. To see a significant improvement in your flexibility: 6 hours a week for 3 months. Then 1 hour a week for maintenance. This is not research based this is the protocol he’s found effective with his athletes.

13. If you stretch between sets, be sure to contract the muscle for 2 seconds before starting your next set.

14. If you’re a trainer or coach: never overwhelm the client. People retain 10 seconds of info and the less info you provide the more they will retain. For example, when teaching technique, Charles uses three words or less per set.  One tip per set.  So if I’m doing horrible looking lateral raises his first cue might be, “Sit up tall.”  Next set, “Straighten your arms.” Next set, “Slower on decent.”

15. Rotate your personal trainers!  Every personal trainer favours certain techniques.  One train might be a stickler for tempo but not full range of motion.  Another trainer might be the opposite.  By working with different trainers you get exposure to each of their specialities. For those without trainers, rotating your training styles is critical.

16. YOU are your own worst coach.  We tend to favour the things we already do or are good at or like doing.

17. Dark haired and dark eye males need a higher dose of stimulants for a response. Blonde hair and blue eyes need a lower dose of stimulants for a response.

18. The BIGGEST mistake fitness professionals make is when they STOP LEARNING.  This was powerful to hear from a man who has 32 years experience and apart of hundreds of Olympic medals.

And I think that’s a great place to wrap up because, as you know, I’m a huge believer in the motto ALWAYS BE LEARNING!

Again, I know they’re many sound bites in my report and not many were in context so if you need clarification then ask.  I’m flying home from Rhode Island now and can’t wait to put my new info into action (after I take the next five days off to grow!). We were told we would all gain 5-7 lbs of lean body mass in the next five days so I’m going to bed with anticipation like it’s Christmas Eve!

Thanks for following the week with me and maybe one day you can join me at a Hypertrophy Bootcamp!

Vince Del Monte

Wow… 12 workouts done and 3 to go!

Today can be defined in two words: Hurt Box

DOMS from the triple day quad workout Tuesday kicked in this morning.  Literally, my knees buckled with every step … so did the 16 other students as we wobbled to the gym for triple day ham/glute/lower back work focusing on relative strength, functional hypertrophy and finishing with a Japanese Drop Set (which MURDERED me)… you can see the road kill pictures below…

The highlight of the day was having Charles discussing program design and organizing 15 different aspects for hypertrophy in a continuum from “intensification” to “accumulation”.  Absolutely brilliant info that helps athletes recover, grow and progress.

Ready for the takeaways?!

1. Virtually EVERYTHING can be explained (and make more sense) along a continuum.

2. Most people have difficulty interpreting info because they see the world through a straw.

3. The fastest way to make muscle gains is using a 2x a day training split.

4. When training 2x a day, your cycles should not exceed 10 days before unloading volume for days. Then you can repeat.

5. If doing double day workouts, keep the evening workout shorter than the morning workout.

NOTE: I know this double day muscle work is going to sound counter intuitive and I have pages of notes and protocols to do my best to answer questions. I’ll be testing these methods out on myself shortly and reporting results… Charles has more than a decade testing this protocol and convinced us it’s superiority.  YEAH!!!!!  Just when you think you’ve tried it all… Nope!  More to come…

6. With training twice a day you would do a CNS style workout in the morning (will potentiate more fibers for the evening) and a METABOLIC style workout in the evening.  For instance, your am workout would be something like 12 sets of 1-3 RM (100-175% effort via eccentrics) and the evening session would be something like giant sets.

7. Any type of multi session training needs at least 4 hours between workouts.

8.  68% of the population make progress on splits that look like A + A + A etc  (basically doing the same workout all the time). The majority of people reading my blog are probably no longer in that 68%.  The next best split is a A + B + A + B so you would hit each muscle group every 5 days. We’re talking about hypertrophy here.  No Nonsense Muscle Building users will know this is how the first 6 months is designed and how it works so well.

9.  High variation workouts only work for 1 out of 11 people and that 1 person is a “gifted freak of nature”.  In short, too much variation often backfires unless you’re that gifted freak.  When I say “gifted freak”, think Michael Jordan.

10. Determining how long to do a hypertrophy based program is EASY to figure out: Don’t stop doing it until you stop growing.  For some that may be 2 weeks and for others than could be 12 months.

11. If you don’t feel like having sex with your wife then you’re adrenal glands are fried.  For non married guys, if a Victoria Secret commercial does not catch your attention, your adrenal levels could be in the toilet. Adrenal supplements can fix this.

12. Everybody responds to over training different.  Some people’s immune systems get shut down (signs of this are getting emotional i.e. you start to cry when you watch a Bounce commercial), some peoples joints get really sore, some people lose their sex drive (adrenal shut down).  Each type of overtraining can be fixed, usually with supplements.

13. Tonight I did a Japanese Drop Set… MURDER.  ABSOLUTE MURDER! And I did it on the Pendulum Leg Press that forces your heels to touch your ass…. at the END of the day.  You pick your 5 RM and take it to 25 sets in sets of 5.  So basically 5 drop sets of 5 with your 5 rep max on EACH mini set!  If done properly, you’ll puke and crawl into the fetal position sucking your thumb.  I was so sick afterwards I could not eat anything for 2 hours.  Can anyone tell me why this would have happened to me?  Here’s what the Japanese Drop Set  did to most of us…

14. “If you don’t dread going to the gym, you’re NOT training hard enough.”  I know you don’t want to believe it but it’s true.

15. If you’re overtrained with VOLUME, you take naps while driving!

16. If you’re overtrained with INTENSITY, you can’t sleep at night.

17. Plantar flexion (pointing your toes) will “disengage” your calf from assisting and isolate your hamstrings more.  Next time you do any variation of a leg curl, point your toe and you’ll see it’s harder.  I’ll explain the anatomy in another video.  Pointing your toes will bring your calf into assist so you’ll be able to lift heavier (but less isolation on hamstring).

18. Pointing your toes outwards puts more emphasis on the biceps femoris. Pointing your toes inwards puts more emphasis on the semibraneous and pointing your toes outward puts more emphasis on the semitendinous.  You can NEVER isolate one of the hamstring muscles, just shift the emphasis.  In application, to get strong hamstrings, vary your toe position. I just gave you SIX (6) different options to your hamstrings training with one exercise (leg curls).

Glad you’re enjoying these updates!  It’s my goal to run my own Muscle Camps in the future so you can have a similar experience I’m having.  I’m so so blessed and appreciative to be around people like Charles Poliquin, Ben Pakulski, and his amazing instructors Derek and Ryan.

Let me know if you need any clarification or have further comments or questions below!

Vince Del Monte

We covered three different hypertrophy protocols for arm training while emphasizing multiple angles on the strength curve to reach the end results of bigger arms.  I am absolutely grateful for the opportunity to be around individuals who have made this line of work their life calling so they can make my life better and I can hopefully do the same for you,

Okay, here are today’s take aways…

1. Every arm exercise moves through a force curve – the stretch (fully extended) position, mid range (where you are strongest) and the shortened (fully contracted) position.  Isolating different points of the strength curve makes a huge difference in hypertrophy.

2. Arnold (probably intuitively) got this correct. If you study his workouts you’ll notice he uses many exercises to stretch the length, overload the mid range and strengthen the contraction.  Maximize Your Muscle members know this style of training as Positions of Flexion (as coined by Steve Holman of IronMag)

3. It’s “Tricep(s)!” not Tricep….”

4. Slight cervical extension is needed for max strength while training because when you flex your neck forward you won’t get max activation of all the muscles innervated by C1-c7.  In short, when you train, keep your neck neutral or very slightly extended back.  Once you look down or flex your neck forward, you’ll lose a good percentage of strength immediately.

5. The lateral head of the triceps is the lazy ass of the three. It requires loads of greater than 85% to be activated.

6. The long head head and medial head of the triceps are the work horses.

7. The more your elbows are away from the mid line of your body, the more lateral head.

8. For the majority of the population the typical individual has fast twitch triceps. (The greatest hockey players will typically have slow twitch muscle fibers as it contributes to accuracy.  Hockey goons have fast twitch biceps (yank the guy in) and fast twitch triceps (to pummel the guy in the face).

9. The best tricep extension of all time is a decline tricep extension with chains. (I’ll show you why in a video some time).

10. Heavier weight (reps of 2-3) on chin ups, before your bicep work, will potentiate (activate) more work in the elbow flexors (biceps).  Before you train biceps next, do 5 sets of 2 (heavy weight on chin ups) and then go train your lifts. Get ready to set some PBs!

11. Biceps are climbing muscles. Start climbing trees

12. Trying to learn anatomy through text books is like training to learn how to fight by watching Bruce Lee videos.  At some point, you need to get in a real fight!

13. The best way to learn anatomy is through dissection courses. Google search “anatomy with cadavers for strength coaches” and start learning about the human body with a 3-D view.

14. Charles talked about his breakthrough with knee rehab.  His secret? Squatting balls to the hells = bulletproof knees.  I’ll be taking future courses to understand this better in the future. Note: this does not apply IF you’re currently injured.

15. The BIGGEST limiting factor for skinny guys who want to build muscle: APPETITE.  Your appetite will dictate how big you get.  Ben reminded us that three of the guys who have the biggest appetite he knows also happen to be the biggest bodybuilders – Kai Greene, Victor Martinez and Ronnie Coleman.  In short, the guys who build muscle the FASTEST have huge appetites.

16. Certain volume training (think high rep leg workout) can lead to a high level of acidity.  Balance your pH levels with a greens drink.

17. The sports that deplete glycogen the fastest are judo, speed skating and wresting.

18. The average weight training workout burns 350 calories.

19. Want to get the best carb sources for your carb powder?  Find out what the guys in the Tour De France use.  We’ll be using what they use right now in about 15 years from now!

20. Look at supplements like this.  The supplements you take pre workout will determine how strong you are. The ones you take while you train will determine your work capacity and the ones you take after your workout will dictate your recovery.

21. You probably know this but Red Bull is the biggest scam of all time. I believe at least two of the ingredients are stimulants but those sneaky bastards put in another ingredient called taurine – a supplement that is a “downer”. In short, it can put you to sleep.  Taurine kicks in after the stimulants have got you wired taking you down and causing you to want to drink another one!  Stop drinking Red Bull!  Don’t ever buy a pre workout supplement with taurine in it.  You’ll fall asleep in the locker room.

I know there were a lot of sound bites and some of the points are not put in context so if you need any clarifications about anything, let me know below.  Your comments, feedback and questions are always welcome.

ALWAYS be learning!

Vince

The nickname for Day 2 was Dropping The Hammer of Doom on the Lower Body!

When it was announced my team of three would be doing three quad dominant workouts in one day I thought, “How is that even possible?”  Especially when you’re training the same muscle group each session.  And especially since I never considered myself a masochist.

Completing three workouts a day on the same body part (I’m predicting) is going to be the “a-ha” moment of the week and I don’t think any of us thought we could make it through. So far we have… but we still have another leg day on Thursday so maybe I should shut up. If you’re thinking…

Are we sore? Oh my gawd yeah.

Did I want to crawl into the fetal position, suck my thumb and call my Mommy?  By the 25th set of the first workout, yup!

Isn’t this over training? Absolutely. But it’s strategic and brief.

Will I recover?  Of course!

We’re all listening to the wisdom and experience of Charles and sticking to his precise peri nutrition protocols and increase bumped up nutrient intakes by 50% overall normal requirements.

Plus, we’re in groups of three so the moral support is awesome. I’m in a group with two Alpha Males and we’re having a blast pushing each other to the brink of death.

Here are some of my take aways from our in-class sessions and nazi-style workouts…

1.   Pre Workout Stack: 40grams of BCAA, 5grams of Carnitine (l-carnitine and acetyl-l-carnitine from tartrate), 1 electrolyte pack, beta-alanine.  I had this stack three times today!

2. BCAA increase blood sugar while we train, are strongly anti-catabolic, require no energy to digest (maintaining growth hormone levels), increase cortisol (cortisol provides energy) insulin and growth at the same time, increase insulin sensitivity, and increase androgen receptivity.  Best way to take BCAA caps is to put them in a cup and carry your cup around with you. If you can only afford one supplement, BCAA is your best pick.  Plus, if you have a sensitivity to dairy, throw away your protein powder (unless it’s lactose free) and just use BCAA.

3. When hamstrings act as a knee flexor, you utilize more slow fast twitch muscle fibers. When hamstrings act as a hip extensor, you utilize more fast twitch muscle fibers. Therefore, your knee flexor exercises should be more explosive, lower reps and heavier. And your hip extensor exercises should be more controlled, higher reps and moderate weight. 

4. Quads have mixed fibers for the average individual. In short, the average individual has a various distribution of muscle fibers so to get your quads to grow you need to use a wide variety of rep ranges.

5. The fastest way to break a muscle growth pleateau is with Eccentric training.Notice the hanging clamps with weights on them? Once you hit the floor, those clamps fall off so you can travel down with more weight than you come up with. Incredible!

6. Research almost never tells the whole story. For example, we know that having sugars during a workout is excellent to replenish your muscle glycogen but the insulin spike blunts growth hormone production.  So here’s the lesson: If you really want to become a student of exercise you need to read further into the research and science to be able to see the entire story.

7. The best exercise science research comes from Findland, Germans, Andrew Fry, William Kraemer and Lawerence Weiss.

8. When doing eccentric training the rule is that you prescribe a tempo and the tempo DICTATES the load. You know you’re doing eccentric training properly if you’re shaking uncontrollably at the end.  If you did a 10 second eccentric on squats, you’re still in control on the last second of the last rep.

9. Bodybuilding is the easiest concept in the world. Essentially, the goal is expose your body to a stimulus it has not figured out how to handle yet.  Do you think I’m going to make gains of of 3 a days?  Yup!

10. Critical Drop Off Index: During hypertrophy work (your goal is to gain size), when your strength drops off by 20% in a workout, that means it’s time to stop the workout. During CNS work (your goal is to gain strength), when your strength drops off by 7% it’s time to stop the workout.

11. An indication of a REALLY flipping amazing coach is if he can help you gain strength without your body weight going up weight classes!  Perhaps, the biggest challenge of a strength coach.

BONUS TIP: When you squat boys you squat “Balls to the heels” as one of the instructors yelled. Yes, your balls should touch your heels. Slightly bigger balls is an not cheating.

12. Specialized eccentric training should not make up more than 20% of your yearly volume and should not be introduced until after 2 years of base.

13. Too much eccentric training makes you stronger but also slower.

14. Good coaches will always change their philosophies as they evolve.

15. If you’re not experiencing severe mental anxiety and depression after two weeks then you’re not training hard enough! This was a huge “a-ha” moment.  A typical bench after a set…

16. Soccer players have the fewest “athletes” in professional sports… One of the worlds highest paid soccer players can not do 4 chin ups. Another onne of the worlds highest paid soccer players has the record on his team for clean and jerk. 72kg.  That’s good if you’re 15 years old … and a girl.

17. In a locker room of 63 professional baseball players, Charles was reminded that 5 of them looked relatively fit.

18. The majority of professional athletes are not as fit as you think. Many are simply genetic freaks.

19. Here’s what one of our instructors, Derek, yelled out to one of the groups on leg press when the intensity dropped, “50kg on the leg press has never been a heavy weight in the history of weight lifting. We’re not making history today. Get your “blank” act together.” 

20. Muscle modelling occurs from eccentric training, not concentric training.  If you’re failing to control the weights on the negative portion then you’re wasting your flipping time. Go home and take up chess.

21. Don’t train with Charles Poliquin. You’ll want to commit suicide.

22. Big Ben Pakulski is sitting at 130kg and 5.1% bodyfat!  Charles did his BioSig and he’s a beast!  Ben pushing on on the fifth exercise of a 5 exercise giant set. 20 reps with no pause at the bottom or top is a recipe for setting your quads on fire.

23. I bailed three times while doing 10 second eccentric squats because my hips are too tight.

Six workouts down and nine to go. Keep praying for me. Comments and questions below!

Instructors:
Charles Poliquin
Ben Pakulski
Derek Woodske
Ryan Fanley

Welcome to my daily report of the 2012 Hypertrophy Bootcamp!  Here’s how we were greeted:

“Over the next five days you’re going to learn FIFTEEN (15) hypertrophy methods.  Each day we’ll train three times and each time we train you’ll learn one new method. After the next five days you need to take five complete days off.  No deload day or “active recovery”. Nothing. The next five days you’ll each gain 5-7 pounds of muscle. Any questions so far?”

The 17 students from Australia, Finland, Canada and the U.S. drooled with anticipation…  Where have you been all my life Charles?!

Today we went through three workouts for chest and back starting off with a Modified Hepburn method in the morning and then ending with giant sets in the evening.  Here are some sound bites from the notes. Feel free to test my new knowledge behind the WHY of each of these methods:

1.  During CNS (central nervous system) training forced reps are used for one thing and one thing only…. To save your friends life. Otherwise, forced reps are not permitted during CNS training. Why? Because forced reps increase acidity which decrease force production. Plus forced reps lead to bad form and bad form with heavy loads can lead to injuries.

2. There are three categories of people in the gym:

- Those who know a lot of theory but don’t have a flipping clue of what they are doing.

- Those that have a lot of experience but are misguided by horrible theory and concepts.

- Those that have theory AND enough experience to created desired changes and responses.

3. Training makes you weaker and smaller. At the end of this 5 days I’m going to be skinnier.  The goal of your training is to train so hard you make yourself “skinny” so when you recover you “supercompensate” and become bigger.  Why does that make sense? The more stress = the more growth… IF you recover and if you recover then you’ve experienced the “training effect.”

4. CNS workouts in the morning (the one we did this morning consisted of 13 sets of 3 reps) potentiate (excite) the CNS, which in turn helps you recruit 5-7% more muscle fibers in the afternoon.  This ONE tip got me my moneys worth.  Heavy training in the morning. Volume training in the evening.  5 days on. 5 days off.  You can only do these double or triple day sessions for 1-2 cycles max. Drug assisted individuals might be able to handle three of these cycles if their sleep and nutrition is perfect.

5. Our Pre Workout Supplement Protocol: BCAA  + Carnitine + Beta Alaninine + 1 electrolyte pack.  I’ll talk about WHY this stack is so powerful in the future.

6. Best way to train CNS system is EXPLOSIVE REPS (as fast as you can) with 4 second negative.  Why is explosiveness necessary? Because we are trying to recruit the fast-twitch muscle fibers that have the greatest potential for growth.

7. If you’re on a tight budget the only supplement you need is BCAA (for muscle growth).  BCAA increase blood sugar while you train, increase insulin, cortisol and growth hormone at the same time, increase insulin sensitivity and androgen receptor receptivity (your ability to uptake testosterone and utilize it).

17 students from around the world!

Lunch was sponsored by Whole Foods – My body was so fried after the FIRST workout I had no appetite and had to wait to eat my chicken, veggies and salad. I couldn’t even eat the yams.

What we did after the first workout. Slept on the floor!

One cool thing: Unlimited access to supplements pre, during and post workout.

Dumbbells with spinning handles! Everything in 1 kg to 160kg in 1 kg increments!

Tomorrow I’ll get you more action shots!  My back and chest are still shaking and I have virtually no appetitive tonight which is a sign of being overstressed and overtrained (today). No doubt!  Looking forward to sharing this amazing experience with you.

LIKE it up if you want more updates. Questions and comments below!

Meal 1: The Meat & Nuts Breakfast (Protein + Fats + Veggies) 

8 oz of buffalo patties + 2 whole organic eggs + spinach and tomatoes + 1 oz of mixed nuts.

The logic: The single best dietary tip I learned in 2011 to optimize leanness, energy and concentration is rotating different meats and nuts for breakfast.  This foods combination is excellent for controlling blood sugar levels via the meat and nuts combination. Everyone I’ve spoken to reports improved mental focus and energy instead of the typical high carb breakfast.  Rotate your meats and nuts every few days.  Turkey, chicken, venison, buffalo, ground beef, sirloin or wild game are great. Rotate your nut sources from almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts and brazil nuts.  I add two whole organic eggs and veggies and hot sauce for taste.  This breakfast takes less than five minutes to prepare and has become one of my staples for managing leanness and work productivity.                     

Meal 2: First Pre Workout Meal (Protein + Carbs) 

8 oz of  white fish + 1.5 c ups of quinoa salad (veggies, curry, sun dried tomatoes) + zucchini

The logic: A “pre workout meal” consisting of proteins + carbs does not need to be the meal closest to your workout as many assume. When the fuel is in your muscles, it’s in your muscles. It does not disappear unless you deplete it with activity.  Although I train after my third meal, I have my protein + carbs meal as meal 2, not meal 3.  I rarely ever consume carbs the meal immediately before I train (I’ll explain why below) but instead I consume my carbohydrates 2-4 hours before I train.  This provides more time for my body to completely absorb the nutrients and be available for my workout.

Meal 3: Second Pre Workout Meal (Protein + Veggies) 

4 oz of chicken + 1 cup of egg whites + veggies

The logic: Notice their are no carbs in my pre workout meal. Why? For once, I already consumed them in meal two and by now they are completely absorbed and digested and ready to utilize.   Two, I want high levels of focus, drive and a positive mood and carbs can leave you drowsy and sluggish. Think about the last time you had a huge carb meal before you trained. I bet you were yawning your entire way through the workout.   I find the more focused you are during your workout, the more intensity you can create.

Meal 4: Workout Supplements 

Starting 30 minutes into the workout:

30-60 grams of carb powder + 20 grams of BCAA + 20 grams of Glutamine + 5 grams of creatine + 5 grams of D-Ribose (Sometimes arginine & beta-alanine)

The logic: Liquid carbs provide a fast source of energy and spike insulin to blunt cortisol.  Insulin sensitivity is increased during a workout so we can shuttle nutrients like amino acids and recovery agents to promote muscle growth, energy and recovery.

Immediately after the workout I consume 30-40 grams of protein powder and 1-2 scoops of greens powder.  I never mix my amino acids with protein powder since amino acids are absorbed quicker and I don’t want the aminos to be competing with the protein powder for absorption.  The greens powder combats the acidity produced after a workout and it’s not very practical to eat a huge greens salad on the drive home.

I like rotating my supplements just like I rotate my muscle building foods. The elite line of supplements are Blue Star Nutraceuticals.

First Post Workout Meal (Protein + Carbs + Veggies) 

8 oz of white fish + 2 cups of brown rice + 1 cup of green beans

The logic: I eat a fast-digesting protein always after a workout. Does it make sense to eat a protein source that takes a long time to get into your muscles?  No! I want a fast uptake and protein digested into my system which is why I would never eat a fattier protein like steak, eggs or salmon after a workout.  I normally have sweet potatoes post workout and try not to eat the same carb source more than twice a day but today is an exception.  Slow digesting wild rice for energy and minor insulin spike to move the fish into my muscles.  I don’t go crazy with greens during my first post workout because they can slow digestion and sometimes fill you up too fast preventing you from finishing your protein and carbs.  I always have 5 grams (at least) of high quality fish oils with my post workout meal.  This amount of fat post workout is acceptable. Notice we don’t consume a large amount of fats post workout.

Second Post Workout Meal (Protein + Carbs + Veggies)  

4 oz of chicken + 4 oz of sirloin + 4 oz of mahi mahi (white fish) + 1 cup of brown rice + 1 cup of broccoli

The logic:  Athletes who rotate their protein sources report increased energy levels and lessened requirements for sleep.The problem with consuming the typical “bodybuilder diet” of beef, eggs, diary and protein shakes is that when you consume the same protein foods over and over, you are limited by the weakest amino acid in any one protein.

The brown rice is a complex carbohydrate that contains fiber and other nutrients to slow digestion and these carbs will help restore muscle glycogen that was depleted while you workout .  Carbs create a insulin spike to help move nutrients into the muscle tissue quicker too. The vegetables help slow digestion further and provide a healthy dose of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.  I always have at least 5 grams of fish oils in both of my post workout meals to reduce inflammation as well.

Final Meal of The Day (Fattier Meat + Fats + Veggies)

12 oz steak + 2 cups of green beans + 2 oz of avocado or mixed nuts (not showing)

The logic: 2-3 hours leading up to bed we want insulin levels controlled and a slow and steady release of energy to our muscles while we sleep. This calls for long-lasting and slow-releasing foods like a fattier piece of meat such as a steak or salmon.  Combining nuts or avocado will slow the rise in blood sugar even further and the veggies will add extra fiber to allow for a steady release of nutrients while you sleep.  Unless you train in the evening, avoiding carbs before bed is an excellent method to optimize leanness.

Above is what I would consider a perfect day of execution for my muscle building diet. Portion sizes will change based on my current level of leanness, training intensity and volume. Unless my training time changes, this is how my muscle building foods and muscle building diet looks except I rotate the food sources from day to day. If I’m not growing at the rate I prefer I look at adding 25% more carbs to meal two, the carb powder and first post workout meal.  That will usually kick start some new muscle growth. The beauty of having a muscle building meal plan is the framework it provides. I can add or subtract portion sizes based on whether I’m gaining my 2-4 pounds of muscle each month.

NOTICE: I understand this meal plan might look “impossible” for a normal human to follow but I can reassure you that if you take a One Meal At A Time approach to consuming and preparing your meals, it’s possible. And I understand there are no fancy recipes and this muscle building diet only contains the “bare essentials.”  Stay tuned for next week as I start sharing some delicious muscle building recipes that contain extra super foods and spices to make your cooking super tasty.

Class dismissed. Questions? Comments?  Post below and if that was helpful, hit the LIKE button!  Thank you.

Before customizing your own muscle building diet, your general goal should be to gain a half-pound to two pounds of muscle each week.  That is two to four pounds of muscle each month. To accomplish this weight increase, you will need to gradually consume an extra 500-1000 quality calories a day above your basal metabolic rate and exercise exertion requirements.  These additional calories will promote faster muscle growth.

The average hard-training individual will need to consume at least 10 calories per pound of body weight just to meet their daily basal metabolic requirements.  These same individuals need to take in an additional 7 calories per pound of body weight to meet any daily activity need that requires movement and focused exercise such as weight training and cardio.  For example, an individual who weighs 180 pounds, who is moderately active throughout his regular life, and who weight trains intensely and consistently, will need to consume approximately 3,600 calories to add quality muscle to his body (180lbs x 17 = 3,060).

Many bodybuilders will do well with a macronutrient calorie breakdown of 40 percent complete complex carbs, 30 percent protein, and 30 percent fats. Keep in mind, this example is intended to be a guideline because your body has a unique set of dietary responses.  Others may find a different ratio works better for them.  It’s strongly suggested that you use your body and the mirror as your main guidelines – if you’re not pleased with how you feel or what you see in the mirror each week, minor adjustments to your nutrient ratio and serving size are acceptable until you find what works best for your body.

To encourage muscle growth, strength gains, and recovery, you need to ingest sufficient amounts of high-quality protein along with enough complex carbs to fuel heavy, and intense, training sessions. Strive to consume at least 1.0 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight and 1.5 to 2.0 grams of carbs per pound of body weight for a baseline.  Pay attention to how your body responds to the ratio of protein and carbs you are eating – depending on your body’s insulin sensitivity, metabolism, and body fat levels, your needs will vary but start with at least 1 gram of protein and 1.5 grams of carbs per pound of body weight, and add 25% each week if you’re not growing.  Your dietary fat intake should account for 0.5 grams of fat per pound of body weight.

There are 4 calories in every gram of carbs and protein, and 9 calories in every gram of fat, so an individual who weighs 180 pounds will consume 180 grams of protein per day (180 x 4 = 720 calories), 270 grams of carbs per day (270 x 4 = 1,080 calories) and 90 grams of fat per day (90 x 9 = 810 calories).  In total, that’s 2,610 calories to gain quality muscle mass without unwanted body fat. So, how do we make up the missing 400 calories? (Remember, our daily calorie guideline is body weight multiplied by 17).

The answer:  One “Freebie Meal” a day, which I’ll explain in a moment.

Advanced Muscle Building Diet Rules To Maximize The Muscle-to-Fat Ratio 

• Establish a regular meal cadence by consuming at least five calorie-dense whole-food meals and one muscle shake each day. At first, this might seem like a lot of surplus calories, but this amount is necessary to facilitate muscle growth.

• Earn your carbs by timing them as follows:  one meal before you train, during your workout, one hour after you train, and four hours after you train.  Only give your body carbs when they are required for intense exercise.

• Rotate your protein sources at each meal to optimize digestion and absorption.  The best sources of protein are bison, buffalo, sirloin, venison, turkey, chicken, white fish, salmon, and whole eggs.  Hydrolyzed protein is your best protein powder supplement.

• Rotating carb sources is not as important as rotating protein sources but I believe your body will be more responsive to variety.  The best sources are potatoes (all colors), yams, white and brown rice, Ezekiel cereal, Ezekiel bread, oatmeal, beans, and small amounts of fruit.  A carb powder like Vitargo or Karbolyn are your best carb powder supplements.  Gatorade is sufficient if the first two options are beyond your budget.

• Eat at least 1 cup of veggies with every meal to optimize digestion and absorption and to control blood sugar levels.

• Rotate your fat sources each day to get a variety of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fats into your diet — walnuts, pecans, cashews, almonds, all nut butters, coconut oil, olive oil, avocados, and a variety of seeds.

• Sip on 30-50 grams of carb powder, 5-10 grams of glutamine, 5-10 grams of branch chain amino acids, and 3-5 grams of creatine starting 30 minutes into your workout in order to blunt cortisol (a catabolic hormone released in response to stress), and to initiate muscle growth.  I purchase the majority of my mainstay muscle building supplements from Blue Star Nutritionals.

• Drink a top-quality organic greens supplement when you wake up. This will infuse your body with easily-absorbed vitamins, minerals, amino acids, chlorophyll, enzymes, phytonutrients, and alkaline salts that help neutralize acids and ensure your cells are living in an environment in which they can thrive and grow. I recommend Super Greens from Living Fuel or Genesis from Prograde.

Here’s a sample diet for a 200-pound individual who wants to gain quality muscle, and is based on the rules above:

Meal 1 –
3 whole eggs
8 oz of extra lean beef
1 cup of veggies (spinach)
2 ounces of mixed nuts

Notes: This individual can rotate his protein sources by having buffalo, sirloin, turkey, chicken and venison. It’s okay to eat meat with breakfast!

Meal 2 – Pre Workout
2 cups of whole wheat pasta
1 cup of tomato sauce
8 oz of white fish
1 cup of veggies

Note: This individual can rotate his carb sources with yams, Ezekiel cereal, quinoa or rice.  Any coloured vegetables are optimal.  Any white fish option is acceptable because they are low in fat, rich in B vitamins, rich is selenium, a great source of iodine and high in protein.

Meal 3 – Workout Shake – Begin Sipping During Workout
80 grams of carb powder + Glutamine, Creatine, BCAA
15 minutes later – 40 grams of isolate protein

Note: The carb powder can be adjusted based on the intensity of the workout. I pack my Vitargo in my gym bag.  Sometimes on leg or back days I need more.  On a smaller body part day or lower intensity day, I might not have my carb powder at all or I’ll reduce the amount.  Use your “current setting” to dictate the need for carb powder.

Note: If you have a Greens powder, having 1-2 scoops after your workout is excellent for reducing the acidity in your body and shifting your body to a more alkaline state.  

Meal 4 – 1 Hour Post Workout
12 oz of sweet potato
12 oz of chicken
2 cups of veggies

Note: Sometimes I go to a healthy restaurant and get the Mixed Grill dish which comes with a variety of fish, chicken and steak plus brown rice and vegetables.  A variety of protein sources post workout is an amazing option every a SUPER hard workout.

Meal 5 – 4 Hours Post Workout
1 cup of egg whites
8 oz of turkey
1 slice of low-fat cheese
2 cups of broccoli
2 cups of brown rice

Note: Mixing turkey, egg whites, brown rice and veggies into a stir fry is a great dish.  Sometimes I’ll add hot sauce, spices or a salsa for healthy flavour.

Meal 6:
10 oz steak or salmon
2 oz avocado
1 cup of veggies

Note: Unless you’re training late at night, always strive for protein and fats pre bedtime.  This helps elevate growth hormone levels while you sleep and keeps you full with lots of quality nutrients while you sleep and get ready to do it again tomorrow!

Note:  This is a very similar meal plan to the one I followed to bulk up from 214 pounds to 227 pounds (after eight years of training), and on days I could not adhere to the diet plan above, I would substitute one of the meals with a “freebie meal” which is basically anything you wish…even if it’s a ham- burger and fries.  A “freebie meal” will make it easier to comply with the rest of the diet, and make it more likely that you will hit your goal calories each day.

Lastly, always keep a daily food log to track the calories you consume in the form of proteins, carbs, and fats. By logging your food intake, you provide yourself an accurate snapshot and ongoing reference guide for your nutrition.  Think of it as a map.  This map will become invaluable when analyzing your trek towards your end destination.  Since you can see everything laid out before you, you can easily see where you made a wrong turn if you’re not on track or, where you made a right turn if you’re right on pace for your goal.  As the famous business quote goes, “What gets measured, gets managed.”  Attempting to build muscle without a “roadmap” is like trying to save a thousand dollars without looking at your bank statements!

Class is out. Leave your questions and comments below.

Every time I talk about gaining muscle without fat at a rapid rate, my Inbox gets slammed with criticism like this:

“Gaining 12 lbs of muscle in 21 days is IMPOSSIBLE!” 

  “You can’t even make those kind of gains on steroids!

  “Do you think I’m going to fall for this marketing hype?!”

Ah, the Internet. How far we haven’t come!

Below is a QnA article I did for a fellow skeptic to clarify a number of his intelligent questions about Lee Hayward and I’s 21 Day Fast Mass Building System.

It’ll clarify all the misinterpretations of the claims and show you how over 6,000 users were extremely happy they opened their eyes to a new approach to building muscle.

Question: What is your definition of “muscle”?

Answer: FAT FREE MASS. The human body can manufacture (under optimal training, nutrition, supplements and recovery) anywhere from .25 to 1.0 pounds of dry muscle tissue a week. So we’re talking 2 to 4 pounds per month and this can be higher or lower based on the individual.

Understand, when you increase muscle size (Dry Muscle), you’ll also be able to increase glycogen AND water storage in those new muscles.  More muscle equals more water and glycogen.  This is all considered FAT FREE MASS and it’s weight that will make you look awesome.

So when we say you can gain “12 pounds of muscle”, we’re NOT referring to 12 pounds of dry muscle, we’re referring to 12 pounds of dry muscle AND glycogen AND water.  Fat free mass!

Question: So the premise of the 21-Day Fast Mass Building is to increase FAT FREE MASS (also known as “lean body mass”)?

Answer: Correct! That’s the problem, everyone perceives “muscle” as something different. You hear “rock-solid muscle”, “ripped muscle”, “lean muscle mass”, “lean body mass”, “shredded muscle” and when we reference muscle, it’s “fat free mass”.

Question: In No Nonsense Muscle Building you promote “bulking up” and then “cutting down” Do you still endorse this method?

Answer: Yes! It’s simply ANOTHER road map.  When I wrote NNMB in 2005, I was simply unaware of the concept or science behind cyclical bulking.  Just like actors sills evolve with time, my knowledge evolves too.  I
always caution NNMB users the DEGREE of the bulk. No where in NNMB do I tell users to bulk to the point of getting fat. I always recommend adding muscle while maintaining a four pack.

Question: So how is 21 Day Fast Mass Building different then NNMB?

Answer: Essentially, instead of bulking up for 16 to 48 weeks and then cutting for 8 to 16 weeks, the 21-Day FMB uses CYCLICAL BULKING which consists of shorter bouts (2 to 12 weeks) of bulking, mixed with shorter (1 to 4 weeks) of cutting.

Question: What the hell is the point of that?

Answer: By cycling your bulking, and cutting protocols into shorter bouts, you can take advantage of various metabolic swings that occur in response to bulking and cutting — and optimize your body’s response to each.

Question: Give us an example.

Answer: Okay. Recall the time you wrapped up a long bulking cycle and started cutting. Wasn’t it amazing how fast the fat was stripped off your body? It dropped away quickly, and with little effort. But after time, the rate of fat loss slows dramatically — and ends in some cases.

Question: What causes this to occur?

Answer: Adaptation is the cause. Once you start your cutting phase after the bulk phase, your body is in a prime state to strip of unwanted fat as there are several factors working in your favor.

Question: What are those factors?

Answer: Your metabolic rate is cranked as a result of the surplus of calories — your levels of T3, leptin, and other hormones which contribute to metabolic rate and fat oxidation, are all cranked as a result of the surplus of calories, in response to handling all the calories you’ve been crushing!

Once you drop calories during a cut phase, you quickly experience fat loss because of all these factors working in your favor. Your metabolic rate is higher than ever, and burning up calories like a wildfire tearing through a dry forest; however, as all good things must come to an end, the body begins to adapt to the drop in calories by reducing T3, leptin and other factors — which will, in turn, cause the metabolic rate to decline, and that’s when your fat loss comes to a screeching halt.

Question: What happens when you cut for a long time and then start bulking?

Answer: The opposite! Recall the time you wrapped up a cutting phase (or maybe you even did a photo shoot or competition) and started increasing your calories again. You rapidly put on size. Much of this is due to the fact that calorie restriction will increase insulin sensitivity. Increased insulin sensitivity in muscle tissue will help partition calories toward muscle and away from fat, thus making it easier and faster to gain muscle relative to fat.

Question: Any more info to gain muscle without fat?

Answer: It’s critical that when you transition from bulking to cutting (and vice versa), you will want to take advantage of the metabolic swings we discussed above — before your body is able to adapt to the change. So, when going from a bulking to a cutting phase, we’ll literally cut your calories in half, which will allow you to burn more fat than if you cut your calories slowly, as your body will simply lower your metabolic rate to match your slowly-dropping calorie intake…and vice versa.

When transitioning from a cutting phase to bulking phase, we’ll double your calories to take advantage of the increased insulin sensitivity.

I DO NOT recommend doing this after a really, really long cutting phase (12 to16 weeks) because your metabolic rate will be so depressed that you will be primed to store more body fat. Short cutting cycles, as prescribed in the 21-Day Fast Mass Building, will not depress one’s metabolic rate enough to cause any fat gain.

Question: What is the optimal cutting and bulking cycle in your system?

Answer: We’ve named our brief “cutting phase” the primer phase, and it lasts 7 days. We have named our brief “bulking phase” the overload phase and it lasts 14 days. This is the nutritional premise of the 21-Day
Fast Mass Building and then we have a specific workout protocol to accompany the nutrition.

Question: Do you recommend experimenting with the length of the cycles? 

Answer: We give our users permission to experiment with the length of each phase AFTER they have done one 21-day phase as we prescribe. Pay close attention to how your body responds.

Question: How many 21-day cycles do you recommend?

Answer: I strongly believe that MULTIPLE cycles back to back will produce better results than just once through.  At least 2-3 cycles (42-63 days) will make your body more responsive to the metabolic swings.

END OF INTERVIEW

To read more about cyclical bulking as it’s prescribed in 21 Day Fast mass Building Click Here

And as always, LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW.

For the past few years I’ve been compiling a top things I learned list and it’s that time of year.  Just like last year I broke up my top forty list into four categories that I’m extremely passionate about and they all start with the letter M: muscle, manhood, marriage and money. Lots of personal reflection that I’m sure will resonate home.

Looking forward to your comments afterwards… which one stood out to you?  What did you learn in 2011?

Top 10 Things I Learned About Muscle (& Fat Loss):

1. It is possible to build lean muscle mass while in a caloric deficit.  My preparation for the WBFF World Championships proved it. Optimization of your hormones via training, nutrition, supplementation & recovery is the key. In short, if every variable of your approach is PERFECT, be prepared to surprise yourself. 

2. It’s almost impossible “to lose muscle mass” until you reach the 4-6% body fat range.  Don’t get caught up in fear-based marketing. The only time you can lose muscle is when you’re body is demanding more energy than your body can supply. Avoid “extremes” and you’ll be fine. 

3. The ABSOLUTE most important component of your training is LEARNING HOW TO SELECTIVELY RECRUIT THE TARGET MUSCLE THROUGH A FULL RANGE OF MOTION.  You must be able to FEEL the muscle. Initiate from the working muscle. Use Ben’s Intentions. Control the weights. TENSION TENSION TENSION!  Sound familiar?

4. The best “cheat day” strategy is two half-days a week for building muscle & losing fat. Thursday from noon till midnight and Sunday from noon till midnight is when Vinny lives like a true Italian! The rest of the week is perfect so I’m able to grow while staying lean.

5.  The absolute best time to build new lean muscle is immediately after a week or longer of being in a caloric deficit. This is coined  The Anabolic Amplifier Effect (by Lee Hayward and I) and also known as the “Rebound” effect, which is fully explained in 21 Day Fast Mass Building. Your body is primed for massive anabolic activity when you transition from a cut phase to a bulk phase.

6. The Meats & Nuts Breakfast is the best dietary tip for optimal body composition, energy and mental focus.  The meat allows for a slow and steady rise in blood sugar. The nuts provide a great source of healthy smart fats that allows the blood sugar to remain stable for an extended period of time. Rotate your meat and nut sources. Here’s my typical breakfast: 8 oz of extra lean beef, 2 organic eggs, 2 cups of spinach, coconut oil (mix all together) and a handful of nuts.

7. Specialization training is the key to balancing out your physique and you can prioritize two body parts at a time. I focused on brining up my shoulders & back in in 2011 by training them on Monday and Friday.

8. High volume body weight training works!  In prep for World’s, Ben Pakulski (my coach), had me do 50 variations of chin-ups and pull-ups each morning alongside 200 push-ups (in mini sets and with different hand positions).  I did this about 5-6x a week in the morning alongside my stretching, cardio and abs! I didn’t win Worlds but I think it’s safe to say my back and chest development were superior to all my competitors.

9. MI40 is HANDS DOWN the most bad-ass muscle-building program of 2011! NOS!  Intentions! 40 days. 40 second sets. 40 second recovery. If you don’t own Ben Pakulski’s MI40 System, are you CRAZY?!

10. What gets measured, gets managed. I’ve been preaching this ALL YEAR LONG.  Trying to build muscle & lose fat without tracking your workouts and diet is like trying to get out of debt or save money without looking at your bank statements. It’s RIDICULOUS.

Top 10 Things I Learned About Manhood:

11. We need to revolve our life around three phases: GRIND time… PRIME time… & UNWIND time. Grind time is the stuff that just has to get done – working, keeping the home clean, errands etc.  Prime time is the 2 hours in your day dedicated to your BIG GOAL. If you’re starting a new business, the time you spend BUILDING the business is prime time. And Unwind time is when you disconnect and close your laptop and mobile and connect with your friends and family. Or it’s time spent resting and relaxing.

12. It’s not how many times you get knocked down but how you get back up. This past year I got attacked by haters on You Tube, which resulted in over 85 of my videos being “Rejected for inappropriate content” although these were purely “how to” videos.  I could have sat and cried but I searched out alternative solutions.

13. Treat people like people, not like projects.  Cherish the relationship, not what you might get out of the relationship. People hate being treated like projects.

14. Pleasing your wife is pleasing to yourself. Or, making your wife happy leads to you being happy. Married guys know what I’m saying

15. A real man does not cheat on his girl.  Being tempted is NORMAL. Cheating is not. Giving in to sexual temptation is for the WEAK. If you struggle with sexual temptation, read this book: Every Man’s Battle by Stephen Arterburn and Fred Stoeker.  Get some accountability.  This battle is NOT won alone.

BONUS NOTE: Porn addition will DESTROY YOUR LIFE (slowly).  Get help here: http://www.xxxchurch.com/

16. When a man gets caught checking out another women he does not rationalize his “bad habit” by saying, “Every guy does it…” Instead he says, “I’m sorry. You’re hotter. I’ll do better.” (Yes, I’m human and guilty of this too)

17. A real man does not compare himself to other men and make excuses for living “below par.”  He does not say, “Every guy struggles with this…” He OWNS it. He STRIVES to do better.  Strive for progress, not perfection.

18. Real man know how to take a REST. “Go, go go…” is not always honourable. It’s amazing to be able to unplug and enjoy the MOMENT without wondering who’s emailing and texting you.

19. It’s CRITICAL to make time for “your boys” a.k.a. your close male friends. Schedule time to work out together, go on an adventure, talk about life and struggles, grab a drink, go to a sporting event, play on a team or serve together.

20. Invest in someone younger than you. Who looks up to you?  Where can you be a role model? How can you serve someone who needs you?

Top 10 Things I Learned About Marriage:

21. You can either be right or happy.  You can’t be both.  LOL  But seriously, know when to swallow your pride.

22. The best way to have an argument is with my hand on my wife so reassure her that everything is okay.

23. LISTENING helps. If you expect respect from your girl, show her respect first.

24. It’s never “the issue” that is the issue.

25. If it hurts the one you love, whether it makes sense or not, STOP IT!

26. Leave the iPhone at home when we go out on dates. No one wants to fight for attention with a “third wheel”.

27. Go to bed with your wife (at least 5 out of 7 nights).

28. The couple that plays together, stays together. Continue to do life together.  Flavia and I regularly go to the movies together, workout together, cook together and get dressed up for each other for “hot dates!”  Basically we continue to do the same things that we did that lead us into marriage.

29.  Associate with positive couples.  Protect your relationship from negative influences.

30.  Don’t run away during an argument. This is when she needs you the most.

Top 10 Things I Learned About Money:

31.Your beliefs about money will determine how much you receive and or retain.  If you have limiting or negative beliefs about money, your ability to create/attract income and or your ability to to effectively retain that money will be limited by those beliefs.

32.  You have in life now what you deserve and desire to have. Your physical reality reflects your mind’s reality.  Your sub-conscious beliefs will dictate your current financial situation.

33. Modern economy is based on consumes spending more money.  Be aware of today’s mentality of, “If I don’t have this product, you’re lacking in life.” This mentality will lead to spending, spending, spending. Start reading less newspapers and watching less TV to be less influenced by this marketing.

34. Your income is based on THREE THINGS – the value you place on yourself, the value you provide others and how you market yourself.

35. It’s not what you make, it’s what you keep!  Just because someone makes a million dollars a year does not mean they keep it. Don’t get caught up in people bragging about how much they make, most of the times they are in worst shape then you think. (Even celebrities).

36. Pay yourself first and implement the Rockefeller Rule. (10% to saving, 10% to investing, 10% to giving and then 70% on yourself). Always dedicate a FIXED amount each month to saving and investing and restrict your standard of living to what you have left.

37. Continue to give at least 5% of your income to a charity of some kind. This past year Flavia and I supported three causes – NationWares.com, CompassionCanada.ca and HopeForTheSold.com

38. A quote from Dan Kennedy, “You either believe, like me, that because 1% of the people are rich that ANYONE can get rich, or you believe, like many others, that because 1% are rich that NO ONE can get rich. Don’t let self-limiting beliefs hold you back.”

39. Eating out is EXPENSIVE and addicting. Be careful.

40.  Recognize you are blessed- whatever your current situation. There are tragedies all over the world and a good percentage of people are living in a hellish nightmare right now.   Remember that everything you have is a gift from above and that it can be taken away just as quickly as it was given to you.  Be grateful and LIVE LARGE with what you have been given.

++++++++++++

I hope you enjoyed that….   I believe that we should ALWAYS BE LEARNING & GROWING so this was a fun review. Thank you for reading. I have been doing this on my website since 2006 and it’s a very reflective time for me.  I would love to hear which one stood out to you and what you learned in 2011.  Leave your comments below.

Vince Del Monte