To maximize anabolic environments and muscle growth, perform resistance training with six sets of ten repetitions at about 80% of your one-repetition max, ensuring two minutes of rest between sets to drive metabolic stimulus. Adjust loads to sustain 10 repetitions per set.
Practice needs-based eating by timing carbohydrate intake strategically around training sessions (pre, during, immediately post) to fuel high-intensity efforts. Maintain a largely reduced carbohydrate diet for the rest of the day to promote metabolic efficiency.
To improve heat tolerance and sweat rates, begin with 15 minutes of sauna exposure (around 200°F) and gradually increase to 30-45 minutes continuously. Aim for about 14 exposures over 8-10 weeks for significant adaptation.
Use cold exposure strategically: avoid it during periods of high training load focused on muscle growth, as it can hinder hypertrophy and strength adaptations by dampening the mTOR pathway.
For physical skill development, prioritize quality over quantity by keeping sessions shorter and stopping when fatigue impacts movement accuracy. This ensures the rehearsal of correct movement mechanics.
Adopt an ‘adaptation-led programming’ mindset, understanding that the body is highly plastic and will adapt to specific stimuli. Consciously change overload and stimulus across all training, nutrition, and recovery aspects to drive desired adaptations.
Become a ’thinking man’s athlete’ by consciously understanding your body’s state at all times. Use subjective feedback (mood, sleep, feelings) and objective training logs to interpret individual responses and optimize performance.
Develop the ability to toggle effectively between high-alert, focused states and calm, relaxed states. This skill is crucial for managing energy, preventing burnout, and sustaining high-quality performance over extended periods.
Embrace and leverage acute stress, such as pre-workout arousal or anticipation of a challenging event, as it can increase testosterone and sympathetic arousal (epinephrine/adrenaline), leading to higher physical performance.
Dissolve one packet of Element in 16-32 ounces of water first thing in the morning and during physical exercise to ensure proper hydration and adequate electrolytes (sodium, magnesium, potassium) for optimal brain and body function.
Take Athletic Greens once or twice a day to cover basic nutritional needs, make up for deficiencies, and support microbiome health with probiotics.
Supplement with Vitamin D3K2 as D3 is essential for brain and body health and K2 regulates cardiovascular function and calcium in the body.
Use the Waking Up app for meditation, mindfulness, yoga nidra, or non-sleep deep rest (NSDR) sessions of varying durations to place the brain and body into different states and restore cognitive and physical energy.
When lifting for muscle growth, prioritize metabolic stress by keeping rest periods around two minutes, rather than extending them to lift heavier. Shorter rests drive a more beneficial metabolic environment.
For challenging, high-intensity resistance training protocols like six sets of ten repetitions at 80% 1RM, aim for about two times a week to allow for adequate recovery and sustained progress.
Beyond intensive muscle growth protocols, incorporate other workouts throughout the week with varying emphasis, such as higher volume (12-20 reps, lower intensity) or lower volume (higher intensity) to target different fitness outcomes like endurance or power.
Utilize pre-workout routines and music to enhance sympathetic arousal, as this prepares the body for challenging physical exertion and can lead to increased epinephrine/norepinephrine release and improved performance.
Understand that repeated exposure to the same stressor will lead to accommodation; the body adapts, so new or increased stressors are needed to continue driving adaptation and performance improvements.
During competition phases, when the goal is to maintain performance and technical execution rather than build muscle, use cold exposure as a recovery intervention to reduce inflammation and optimize the body.
During skill learning sessions, engage consciously and cognitively, aiming for mental fatigue as much as physical. Complete engagement in the learning process is essential for effective motor skill acquisition.
For high-intensity, intermittent sports, avoid a completely ketogenic diet, as carbohydrate fueling is often required for optimal performance during high-intensity efforts.
For general health or during periods of lower-intensity activity, consider cycling into ketosis to improve metabolic management and efficiency, teaching the body to preferentially use fats as fuel.
Actively train your body to preferentially use fat at lower exercise intensities and carbohydrates at higher intensities through diet and exercise manipulation. This prevents early fatigue and optimizes fuel availability.
When trying a new training regimen, diet, or recovery intervention, commit to a 12-week period. This is generally sufficient to observe physiological adaptations, progression, or regression within the body.
Cultivate a ‘white belt mentality’ or beginner’s mindset, continuously seeking to learn and adapt. New insights and understanding of human performance emerge daily, even with extensive experience.