Ultimate-man-project-fitness-guide-1-2

Ultimate Man Project

Ultimate Man Project Fitness Guide Purpose of this guide: This guide is intended to provide you with an optimal nutrition, training and lifestyle program to give you maximal results in any fitness goal you have. Many of the recommendations and suggestions used here are based on the latest research, with material taken from fitness and nutrition experts such as Menno Henselmans and Lyle McDonald. Whether your goals are to build muscle, lose weight or just maintain a good physique, this guide will cover all bases. There is also a focus on nutrition to enhance your wellbeing and mood which will go a very long way to improving your game.

Above: The author’s transformation.

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Chapter 1 – Fitness and Game There tends to be a lot of emphasis on fitness within the game community. And for good reason. Fitness and health is an integral component of game. Many people break up game into ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ game but consider a third category: ‘meta’ game. ‘Meta’ game is how well you are able to learn and synthesise both inner and outer game concepts. Someone with good meta game will learn game fast – those enviable guys who go from newbie to advanced in a seemingly inconceivable time frame. Then there are those with poor meta game, who seem to have memorised every single inner and outer game concept but are completely unable to execute in the field. Sure, it’s not so simple as get fit and game will suddenly become easy but fitness will help you much more than you’d think. Not only will fitness improve your appearance, it will also drastically improve your mind. Remember – game is very much an interaction between the mind and body, and if both of these aren’t running optimally, you’re going to make it that much harder for you to succeed. So, to maximise the likelihood you’ll get the most out of this short little book, here’s a list of benefits you can expect when you master your fitness and health: -You will look the best you can possibly look, which could be substantially better than how you look now (if you doubt this, see the next page). -Your mind will be functioning optimally. This will help you learn game much faster and it will help you kill it in field. -You will be more present to the moment and less stressed. -By engaging in fitness, you will be raising your testosterone and reducing your cortisol levels. What are the benefits of high testosterone, you might ask? Namely, a sharper mind, increased confidence and happiness, increased muscle mass and capacity to gain muscle mass, a stronger libido, stronger bones, heightened energy levels and an improved sense of wellbeing. Basically, everything you’d want to be the ultimate man. -You will develop a powerful sense of discipline that you can channel into other areas of your life. -You’re likely to command the respect of other guys a lot more easily. -You will have a higher self-esteem from your ability to commit to a healthy and fit lifestyle. -The list could honestly go on…

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So, I mentioned earlier that fitness can improve your appearance substantially. It’s a little-known fact that your face can also improve dramatically through weight loss. I’ve compiled some examples below:

Without further ado, let’s get into it. 3

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Chapter 2 – Nutrition This second chapter is going to start with the building blocks of any great physique and state of mind: nutrition. Unfortunately, it’s also a topic clouded by huge amounts of misinformation and pseudo-science. This chapter will help dispel any myths you may believe in but also fill voids of knowledge you may have regarding food and eating well. Nutrition is moreover of paramount importance in game – a healthy mind is far better equipped to both learn, adapt and deal with the various problems you will inevitably encounter. More importantly, proper nutrition is an invaluable tool in achieving a state of wellbeing and happiness, which is what we are all after. With all that said, let’s begin. Water It is often put forth that dehydration is a problem of epidemic proportions. You may have read into sources claiming that a gallon, or 3.8L is the right amount of water to drink. However, endurance exercise is the main type of exercise that suffers due to dehydration. Believe it or not, but studies show that 4% dehydration does not affect muscle strength, that 5% dehydration by exercise heat-stress and fluid restriction did not affect vertical jump height, jump squat power or back squat strength in resistance trained men and that 2.3% dehydration did not impair maximal cycling power output in boxers (1, 2, 3). It’s worth noting that these levels of dehydration are actually quite difficult to achieve without active fluid restriction. Is this all to say that you shouldn’t be drinking water? Of course not. However, there is no need to go overboard. Humans have evolved a very accurate ability to maintain sufficient water intake. Even a small change in the salt content of the blood triggers thirst (4). So the bottom line is: drink when you are thirsty. While this is common knowledge for some, it is lost on others. Fruit and Vegetables Fruit and vegetables should be a staple in any diet. Vegetables are the absolute king of vitamins and minerals, providing more nutrients per gram than any other food group. Despite this, the average person’s consumption of fruits and vegetables is generally lacking. The health benefits of increased fruit and vegetable consumption continue up to at least a

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total of 800 grams per day (that’s right, nearly a kilo) even in sedentary individuals (5). What does that mean in practical terms? You will see improvement in your wellbeing, your health and even your game by increasing your fruit and vegetable intake dramatically. This is the low hanging fruit (pun intended) in quickly boosting your energy and vitality which absolutely translates to results in field and in life. In the chapter on vitamins, you will see more on how fruit and vegetable consumption translates to a clearer mind and optimal functioning. Meat, fish and poultry A lot of flak is given to meat and this is generally ill-founded. Meat generally carries a range of vitamins and minerals as well as a great source of protein. However, meat and red meat can become unhealthy when processed with certain chemicals (6). This is where the ‘meat causes cancer’ argument comes from. However, for unprocessed meat consumption (the type of meat you’ll get at the butcher or the red meats you’d get at the supermarket), there is virtually no relation with cancer. Also, even though processed meat can increase your risk of cancer, this is not even close to comparable with other risk factors for cancer such as smoking (7). Never be afraid to go for a steak. In fact, you should include it as a regular in your diet. What about fish? Well, aside from the mercury poisoning scares for canned fish (which are largely unfounded), fish is an amazing addition to any diet. In fact, the health benefits of fish consumption outweigh any negative effects from the mercury content present (8). We’ll also talk more about the benefits of omega-3 later. Poultry and other white meat sources are also free from any controversy and are a healthy addition to your diet. It’s worth noting, however, that they aren’t quite as nutritious as fish or red meat (barring organ meet, which is more nutritious than a multivitamin pill). Eggs In short, eggs are good for you and you should be eating them. Most of the claims that they cause large increases in cholesterol levels are moreover unfounded (9). Eggs are extremely nutritious: they are rich in B-vitamins, have several anti-oxidants and have a good fatty acid profile. Eggs are moreover the only good source of choline you might get in your diet, and research has shown that choline can speed up fat loss by speeding up the rate at which your body burns fat (10).

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Dairy Dairy generally gets a bad reputation, but it is both a high-quality protein source as well as likely the only source of calcium in your diet. It’s also beneficial when losing weight as it is highly satiating. If you’re still not convinced that dairy is good for you, a 2016 review paper found that dairy intake is associated with a low body fat percentage, greater muscle mass, improved bone density, reduced risk of cancer and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease (11). Dairy can, however, lead to issues in cases of lactose intolerance. If you don’t have lactose intolerance, you should absolutely consume daily on a regular basis. If you are lactose intolerant, consider supplementing with lactase enzymes (e.g. lactaid) which enable the body to digest lactose better. Grains First, let’s distinguish between the two main types of grains: cereals and legumes. Examples of cereals include wheat, maize, barely, oats and rice. Examples of legumes include beans, lentils, peas and peanuts. There are a number of studies that highlight the benefit of legumes, which are overall a great source of nutrition (12,13). So it’s definitely a good idea to include foods like almonds, peanuts and beans in your diet. Grains, on the other hand, are surrounded with a bit of controversy. While whole grains are generally considered to be healthy, studies that attempt to demonstrate their health benefits are confounded by the fact that people who eat whole grains tend to be health conscious (14). That means that it’s hard for us to actually isolate the health benefits of whole grains. In fact, a 2017 systematic review on whole grain consumption was unable to find any positive effects of whole grains on any health markers, even when compared to refined grains (15). So while whole grains aren’t terrible for you (and they will still beat refined grains and processed foods), they aren’t as good as fruits, vegetables and meat. There’s also one other problem with grains and that is phytic acid, an anti-nutrient. Whole grains generally contain high levels of phytic acid which can significantly reduce the ability of the body to digest important minerals like magnesium and iron. So while you might often see whole grains praised for their mineral density, you don’t see the fact that you won’t be able to absorb much of those minerals. In bread, only 13% of the magnesium content is absorbed by the body (16). Magnesium is especially something you want to watch, as it contributes to your bodies testosterone and strength (17). 6

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This doesn’t mean you should completely avoid grains. But it does mean that grains should not be a staple in your diet – you should not be getting a substantial amount of calories from them on a day to day basis. Chocolate We’re not talking about your ordinary chocolate bars here. We’re talking about 80%+ dark chocolate. The cacao in these chocolate bars can reduce inflammation and it is also rich in nutrients and all essential minerals. Summary: Foods you should make staples in your diet: • Organ meats • Fish • Non-starchy vegetables • Berries • Kefir, yogurts and quark • Avocado • Olives • Herbs and spices, decaf coffee, decaf tea, herbal tea Foods that are healthy additions to a diet: • Whole fruits • Poultry • Eggs • Non-fermented dairy and cheeses (e.g. whole milk, cottage cheese) • Traditionally prepared whole grains (e.g. sourdough bread, fermented oatmeal) • Soaked and dry roasted nuts/seeds • Potatoes • 80%+ pure chocolate • Pure coconut products Foods that are okay to include: • Regular nuts and seeds • Regular whole grains other than wheat 7

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• Unprocessed red meat Foods that are neither good nor bad: • White rice • Non-wheat flour • Artificial sweeteners • Zero calorie soda Foods you should avoid: • Processed red meats • Canola oil, hydrogenised vegetable fats • Alcohol • Sugar-heavy foods

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Chapter 3 – Calories Before we get into this chapter, it’s worth noting that calories aren’t too major a concern for some portion of the population. If you have gone through life without actively counting calories and have built a solid physique or have at least remained in a lean condition, you can skip this chapter. Chances are, you probably eat reasonably healthy, have a very fast/adaptive metabolism and have reasonably good genetics. For a really good read, check out this link here. For the rest of you, especially with those concerned with building a lot of muscle, calorie counting is very important. Let me break it down for you. If you eat more calories than your body needs (i.e. calories in > calories out), your body will do two primary things: synthesise muscle and store fat. In a perfect world, your body would shuttle every extra calorie into muscle, with none going to fat. Unfortunately for us, we don’t live in a perfect world. Fat gain in a calorie excess (or calorie surplus) is a part of the game. Here’s a major point to note down: there is, as you would expect, a maximum amount of muscle your body can synthesise in a given day. Let’s assume that a 300 calorie surplus maximises the amount of muscle you gain in a day. So, what happens if you eat 500? Simple: you don’t gain any extra muscle than if you ate 300 calories a day and instead, you pack on a whole lot of extra fat (this is a bit of an oversimplification, but it holds roughly like this in practice). The problem for us is, we’re working with small margins here. The difference between 300 and 500 calories is a muesli bar. One muesli bar. Or a large banana. Or four squares of chocolate. If you don’t track what you’re eating, and you eat an extra 200 calories a day, over a year, you would put on approximately an additional 9.5kg of just fat! That amount of fat takes around 20 weeks to lose. So, for some of us, calorie counting can save us 20 weeks of having to lose weight, which sucks a lot. So, here’s my method for quickly tracking your calories without much hassle: Step 1: Find out how many calories you burn each day. You can use a simple calculator like this here. Note that this is just a starting figure – it’s unlikely to be totally accurate, but that’s ok. Over time you’ll get a better feel for how many calories you expend. Step 2: If you are trying to gain weight, eat your maintenance calories + 200. To lose weight, eat your maintenance – 500.

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Step 3: Check your weight once per week. If you are gaining over 0.5kg per week, lower your calories by 100. Be aware of water weight fluctuations – you will need to measure over a month to have a sense of accuracy. And that’s it. One question that gets asked a lot, though, is how long one should bulk and cut for. A good answer to this, supported by fitness expert Lyle McDonald, is to ‘bulk a little and cut a little’. That is, bulk for a period of around 12-16 weeks and cut for around 6-8 weeks to lose the fat you gained over the 12-16 weeks cycle. You will have more muscle than you started with, and you should be the same level of leanness. That also brings us to the question of when one should bulk and cut. A good guideline is to bulk between the 10-15% bodyfat range (i.e. start bulking at 10% and stop at 15%, then cut back down to 10%). Now there’s a very good chance that you aren’t 10% bodyfat. 10% bodyfat, in reality, looks like this:

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To help you find out what bodyfat you might be at right now, check out the following photos (these are verified by a DXA scan, considered the gold standard for bodyfat measurement): 14.8%:

17.4%:

24%:

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Why should we be lean before bulking? There are a number of reasons: 1. Chronic inflammation – Chronic inflammation is strongly linked to your bodyfat percentage (18). What does this mean? Well, inflammation can be good in acute pulses, but chronic inflammation will slow down your muscle growth. 2. Insulin sensitivity – The higher your bodyfat, the less insulin sensitive you are. Without getting into the science, just know that this is not good for muscle growth. 3. Hormones – Having a higher bodyfat lowers your testosterone and increases your cortisol (stress hormone) (19). Now, believe it or not, but the optimal bodyfat for men is 10.7%. Which is a level you’re likely above (don’t worry, most men are). Now this isn’t to say that if you aren’t at 10.7%, you shouldn’t bulk or that you’re not going to gain at all. It just won’t be optimal. If you aren’t yet disciplined to cut to 10.7% (which isn’t an easy feat mind you), keep your bulk cycles at least between 15% and 20% bodyfat. Do not go over 20% bodyfat. For those new to calorie counting, I highly recommend downloading the app MyFitnessPal. Remember, while calorie counting can be a pain, it is also a necessary part of developing a good physique for most of us. Trying to build a great physique without calorie counting is like trying to manage your finances without looking at your account balance. Doable? Yes. Easy? Not at all.

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Chapter 4 – Macros Macros are one of the most overthought topics in fitness. I’m going to keep this section short just to reinforce the fact the split of macros isn’t as important as people think – at least once the basics are in place. For the unaware, macros refer to protein, carbohydrates and fats – the building blocks of all foods. It’s essential to have a balance of all three in your diet and we’ll discuss this below: Protein Protein is vital for muscle building, although it is surrounded with a lot of marketing and hype. Firstly, although you may have heard you need something like 0.5g/kg of protein in your diet, this is not largely true. Here is a great article about the myths of protein consumption and how much you actually need. In short, 0.82g/lb of protein (or 1.8g/kg of protein) is enough protein to build muscle and to retain it when you are cutting. For an individual weighing 70kg, that’s just 126g of protein per day. You can get that much protein by eating one steak a day as well as two large cans of tuna. What about protein shakes? Protein shakes are not superior to other sources of protein such as protein found in meat, chicken, fish or eggs. They are simply an alternative source of protein. I would actually avoid protein shakes, as they tend to be costly and are devoid of nutrients. Get your protein from whole food sources. Carbohydrates Carbohydrates are a fuel source and are technically not needed by the human body (it can create glucose from protein from food and from your muscles if you do not eat carbohydrates). However, they have properties that favour muscle growth, such as causing the body to release insulin. As such, we want to have carbohydrates in our diet. However, we don’t have to go overboard. Many bodybuilding diets tend to be very high in carbohydrates and low in fat. This isn’t always ideal, as fat is very important for hormonal and general health as you will find out below. Moreover, your body doesn’t actually use that many carbohydrates (unless you eat a lot of them). Strength training typically only uses around 50 grams of carbohydrate (20). Now, because the brain uses around 100g of carbohydrate per day, that would put a minimum amount of carbohydrate consumption at around 150g per day.

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There’s nothing wrong with having more carbohydrates than that, as long as you ensure you’re able to get around 80-90g of fat in per day. We’ll discuss macro splits in the next section. Fats Fats, and especially the right kinds of fat, are extremely important in your diet. Fat intake is related to most anabolic hormones (testosterone, growth hormone and IGF-1) (21). In particular, you want to include Omega-3 fats as it can lower chronic inflammation (remember how we said this was bad), protect against muscle damage, lower cortisol levels, increase testosterone production and increase anabolic signalling (22, 23, 24, 25). The optimal dosage is 3g Omega-3s per day, which you can easily supplement via fish oil. You also want to include Omega-6 fats which are associated with increased anabolic hormones. Other fats, such as monosaturated and saturated fats, should also be included in your diet. If you’re worried about where to source these fats, don’t worry. The menu we gave you in Chapter 2 includes food sources that completely cover your bases with regards to adequate fat intake from the right sources. The only caveat to this is if you don’t eat fish, in which case you should supplement with fish oil. Now it’s time to go into how much of each macro we should consume. First, some mathematics. 1 gram of protein gives us 4 calories. 1 gram of carbohydrates also gives us 4 calories. 1 gram of fat, however, will give us 9 calories. We’ll need to use this information below. Let’s assume a hypothetical individual weighing 70kg, 5 foot 10 in height with a sedentary lifestyle outside of the gym. The calorie calculator we gave you above lists our individual’s maintenance calories at 2540 per day. The first step is to calculate the calories coming from protein. Remember that we want 1.8g/kg of protein. Thus, we need 1.8 × 70 = 126𝑔 of protein per day, which is equal to 126 × 4 = 504 calories. So, if we subtract 504 calories from our total of 2540 per day, we are left with 2036 calories. Now also remember that we want 80-90g of fat. This will take off 720-810 calories from our total (9 × 80 𝑜𝑟 9 × 90 since fat has 9 calories per gram). Assuming 80g of fat, we are left with 1316 calories. 14

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Now, we have two choices with what we can do with our remaining calories. We can get it all from carbohydrates or get it from a mix of carbohydrates and additional fats above and beyond the 80g we are consuming. This is honestly a personal preference. For simplicity’s sake, let’s assume that we’ll get it all from carbohydrates. Then, we will need to eat 1316 ÷ 4 = 329𝑔 of carbohydrates. So, what’s our final macro split?

Macro Breakdown Protein 126

Carbohydrates 324

Protein

Fat

Fat, 80

Carbohydrates

And it’s as simple as that. But just a quick note: if you don’t hit your macros exactly, you won’t spontaneously combust. It’s ok to have a little leeway – the above is just a guide of what you should aim for. Counting your calories and macros excessively can become a stress in itself – try to be as flexible as you can while having your average food intakes revolve around the right macro split.

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Chapter 5 – Training: A very important thing to note with respect to training is that it’s not necessarily how you train that makes the difference, but rather how hard you train. To quote Martin Berkhan, a leading cause of failure in the gym is ‘fuckarounditis’: ‘Fuckarounditis is a behaviour disorder characterised by a mediocre physique and complete late of progress despite significant amounts of time in the gym. Fuckarounditis commonly manifests itself as an intense preoccupation with crunches, curls, cable movements, belts, gloves, balance boards, Swiss Balls and Tyler Durden. Fear of squats and deadlifts is another distinguishing trait. Physical exertion is either completely lacking of misapplied. Despite an alarming increase in fuckarounditis in recent years, prevalence may vary greatly depending on location. However, in most local gyms, it has been estimated that 8090% of individuals are afflicted to varying degrees. Environment and social networks are crucial factors for triggering the disease. It has been proposed that the roots of the disease stems from misinformation and counterproductive training advice found in popular media and information hubs on the Internet. Human nature and the so-called ‘laziness’, ‘magic bullet’, and ‘complacency’ genes plays a permissive role for allowing the disease to take hold. The rest of the article is a great read, and I recommend you go take a look. The bottom line is, a lack of progress from training is much more of a symptom of a lack of training ethic than an incorrect training routine. With that said, a good routine is still going to put you in the right direction, so we’ll talk about the basics of training. Firstly, rep-ranges (rep-ranges refer to how many repetitions of the weight you perform, i.e. how many times you lift the weights in a set). You want to aim for the 5-8 rep range area for general growth. Why is this? A 5-8 rep range ensures that you get full muscle fibre recruitment from the very first rep. You also maximise metabolic work and volume in that range, giving it a great balance of tension and work (26). It’s also worth noting that training to failure is suboptimal. It drastically increases recovery time and reduces your work capacity. There is also no difference on training to failure and not training to failure on strength and given the negative effects of training to failure, this gives us strong evidence not to do it (27).

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Secondly, time under tension. Without going into detail, a good guideline for time under tension is to move the weight from its initial position to its final position over 2-4 seconds. Third, the number of sets. As you progress in the gym, you will also need a greater training volume to progress. The overall scientific literature suggests that there are benefits to be made up to at least 10 sets per week per muscle group (28). Note also that more is not better. There are diminishing returns present in excessive training and excessive training in of itself can slow down your gains by raising cortisol levels and impairing your body’s ability to heal. Let’s put it all together now. Below is a sample strength and size training program that assumes you go to the gym four times per week. It’s worth noting that a quick Google search will give you thousands of different workouts, and I encourage you to have a look at them when you’ve given the one below a try. There’s no one optimal workout routine and fundamentally, the best routine is the one you’ll stick to. Day 1 (Chest/Shoulders/Triceps)

Day 2 (Back/Biceps/Legs)

Day 3 (Chest/Shoulders/Triceps)

-Barbell bench press (5-8 reps). -Seated chest press (8-15 reps). -Dumbbell flyes (5-8 reps). -Seated shoulder press (5-8 reps). -Lateral raises (8-15 reps). -Tricep dips (5-8 reps). -Tricep skullcrushers (8-15 reps). -Tricep pulldowns (5-8 reps).

-Wide grip lat pulldown machine (5-8 reps). -Row machine (8-15 reps). -Chin ups (5-8 reps). -Dumbbell bicep curls (5-8 reps). -Barbell bicep curls (5-8 reps). -Rope bicep curls (8-15 reps). -Squats (5-8 reps). -Leg extensions (8-15 reps). -Calf raises (5-8 reps).

-Dumbbell bench press (5-8 reps). -Chest dips (8-15 reps). -Standing shoulder press (5-8 reps). -Lateral raises (8-15 reps). -Tricep pushdowns (8-15 reps). -Tricep dips (5-8 reps). -Close-grip bench press (8-15 reps).

Day 4 (Back/Biceps/Legs)

-Close grip lat pulldown machine (5-8 reps). -Deadlifts (5-8 reps). -Barbell biceps curl (5-8 reps). -Spider curls (8-15 reps). -EZ bar curls (8-15 reps). -Leg curls (5-8 reps). -Leg extensions (8-15 reps). -Calf raises (5-8 reps).

Do three sets for each of the exercises above (the rep-ranges are in brackets). Again, once you have a feel for the workout, go online and seek out additional exercises and routines. You may also need to look up the techniques for performing some of the above exercises listed. Form is critical, so ensure that you are lifting the weight properly. Do not focus on lifting weight that you cannot lift without good form. This is a recipe for injury which will put a hold on your fitness goals. As for rest – aim for 60-90 seconds between sets.

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Chapter 6 – Supplements, Vitamins and Minerals While supplements aren’t necessary if you have a good diet, there are some supplements that can help. These are described below: Ashwaganda Ashwaganda is an adaptogen herb which is effective against anxiety related stress. This may help reduce cortisol to improve your gains. Melatonin Melatonin can help you fall asleep and regulate your sleep pattern. It should be taken 30-60 minutes before bed. Modafinil Modafinil is a non-stimulating, long acting caffeine that mitigates the effects of sleep deprivation. It can also suppress appetite, improve focus and improve cognition/memory. It has a good safety profile with no risk of addiction or tolerance. One issue is that it has a long half-life of ~15 hours, so should be taken immediately upon waking to prevent sleep deprivation. Phenibut Phenibut is a depressant, meaning it can slow brain activity and reduce neurotransmitter levels. It has mood-enhancing properties and can reduce anxiety. Probiotics Probiotics can improve gut health and the functioning of the immune system. But note that supplements aren’t always that effective: one analysis found that 60g of fermented sauerkraut had more probiotics in it than 8 bottles of a commonly sold supplement (29). It’s best to source probiotics from sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, kefir and yogurts.

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Caffeine Caffeine is a stimulant and while often touted for its use in improving gains, for caffeine to physically improve exercise performance, more than 1mg/kg is required. To improve strength training, dosages of 3+mg/kg are needed. It is, however, worth noting that caffeine can induce anxiety and it also raises cortisol levels. This isn’t often a concern, but if you’re someone who is anxiety-prone, it may be worth reducing your intake of caffeine. Fish oil As we mentioned before, unless you eat a lot of fish, you should be supplementing with fish oil. Creatine Creatine helps recycle ATP, allowing muscles to generate force for longer. Because we don’t usually obtain a lot of creatine in our diet, supplementation can increase our creatine stores. It should be taken by loading it first (20g creatine per day for 5 days) and then 5g per day. Now, for your vitamins and minerals: Vitamins/Minerals Vitamin A

RDI 700/900 𝜇𝑔

Max intake 3000 𝜇𝑔

Vitamin C

75/90 mg

2000 mg

Vitamin D

15-20 𝜇𝑔

100 𝜇𝑔

Function Bone development, immune function, cell differentiation Antioxidant, synthesis of collagen, carnitine and norepinephrine Regulator of bone mineral metabolism, blood calcium homeostasis and

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Vitamin E Vitamin K

15 mg 90/120 𝜇𝑔

1000 mg -

Calcium

1000 mg

2500 mg

Copper

900 𝜇𝑔

10 mg

Iodine

150 𝜇𝑔

1100 𝜇𝑔

Iron

8/18 mg

45 mg

Magnesium

310/400 mg

450 mg

Manganese

1.8/2.3 mg

11 mg

Phosphorus

700mg

4g

Potassium

4.7 g

-

Silicon Sodium

10-20 mg 1.5 g

1.75 g 2.3 g

cell differentiation and growth. Antioxidant Actives bloodclotting factors Structural component of bones/teeth, role in cellular processes, muscle contraction Iron use, synthesis of collagen Thyroid hormone synthesis O2 transport and use, antioxidant, thyroid synthesis Component of bones, protein synthesis Brain function, bone, growth, urea synthesis, glucose and lipid metabolism, CNS function Structural component of bone, teeth, cell membranes, nucleic acids Water, electrolyte and cell pH balances Connective tissue Water, pH and electrolyte 20

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Zinc

8/11 mg

40 mg

regulation, nerve transmission, muscle contraction Nutrient metabolism, collagen formation, alcohol detoxification, cell replication and growth.

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Chapter 7 – Lifestyle How you live your life has a huge impact on your physique. Let’s discuss some factors that play a huge role in fitness. Stress Unlike other animals in the animal kingdom, humans are the only creature that can generate stress by thinking (we are the only animal capable of ‘mental stress’). Other animals can only become stressed when their lives are literally at risk, such as when they are being chased by a predator. Us humans, however, can get stressed over our jobs, relationships and any other number of things. This wouldn’t be a problem, except for one thing: cortisol. Cortisol is the hormone your body releases under stress (released by adrenocorticotropic hormone, or ACTH). Cortisol has a lot of nasty effects, one of which being directly reducing strength gains (32). It can literally make a twofold difference in recovery rates as well as decrease the rate that wounds heal. Also, stress can lead to water retention, as excess cortisol reacts with the aldosterone receptor, the receptor responsible for maintaining salt and water balance. This can lead to a puffy appearance, as well as abdominal distention, which isn’t a good look to have. Cortisol also antagonises testosterone and increases the amount of fat you gain while decreasing the amount of muscle you gain. It also makes you crave high-carbohydrate foods – and in excess. Cortisol isn’t all bad. It literally gives you the energy to wake up in the morning. However, excessive cortisol is something you don’t want to have. The best ways to bring your cortisol level down are to meditate, seek recluse in nature, develop a better mindset and pull more girls. Especially the last one. Sleep Sleep is responsible for hormonal regulation and a lack of sleep can: -Increase your appetite. -Decrease your metabolic rate (33). -Decrease your testosterone. -Increase your cortisol. -Lead to a poorer body composition.

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-Reduced wellbeing. -Reduced cognitive functioning. It is critical to get 7.5-8 hours of sleep a night. Important, however, is not to focus too much on the need to sleep. Ironically, some people develop insomnia by placing too much importance on the need to sleep. While sleep is of course important, it isn’t the end of the world if you miss a few nights of sleep here and there (as you inevitably will while going out). As long as you know to recover lost sleep, you’ll be fine. Exercise We all know exercise is great, but did you know that exercise increases the expression of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) (34)? You might now be asking what BDNF does. Well, BDNF is responsible for supporting the survival of existing neurons and encouraging the growth of new neurons. That is, it is responsible for neuroplasticity. Game is all about learning and a lot of it can get quite complicated. For the best results, you want your brain to be as healthy as possible not only to take in relevant information, but also to adapt and learn as new information comes in. Just 10 minutes of exercise can increase BDNF for 90 minutes and this can allow you to learn faster. Exercise is thus critical for your game and also for your quality of life. It literally makes your brain grow.

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Chapter 8 – Begin the Journey You now have enough, nay, plenty of information to go on and tackle your fitness goals. The reason this guide is relatively short is because it’s supposed to be. Achieving a high level of fitness does not require extensive knowledge, but rather a robust knowledge of the factors that count. By taking part in this program, it’s likely you are dedicated to making quality change in your life. Change can begin with this program, but it will only be maintained through habits. Habits such as lifting weights, exercising and dieting correctly will not only give you long lasting health, it will also help you maintain and grow your level of game and relationships over time. Good habits in one area of your life will flow through to others and the effects of this cannot be understated. It is rare that you will find someone with a fantastic physique and great health who has squandered other areas of their life. While this guide has given you a solid foundation to your fitness and health, the rest is up to you. Good luck!

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