Anthony from groombuilder.com lays down the final commandment for pre-wedding lean muscle building: finding the time to chill the hell out, brother…
Muscle Gain: Everything Else
Just like with fat loss, there are two extremely important things you can do to make sure you build the maximum amount of muscle possible:
1. Get 8 hours of sleep
If you want to build a lot of muscle AND keep the fat off, this is a requirement. When your asleep at night, your body produces the highest amount of growth hormone—and it peaks during deep-sleep cycles. Muscle repair takes place during sleep as well, so shortchanging yourself on sleep messes with your hormone production AND muscle repair.
Sleep deprivation has been shown to generate fat gain, which is NOT what we want. For better sleep, stop drinking caffeine after mid-day, drink less alcohol, stop using electronics at least an hour before bedtime, and create a solid pre-bed ritual to get your body and mind ready for sleep.
2. Spend 10 minutes each day distressing
Stress hurts your muscle gains and imparts your athletic ability. When you get anxious, frustrated, and nervous from work, wedding prep, or family stuff, you increase the odds of hurting yourself or getting sick.
Relieve the tension by taking 10 minutes in the middle of your day to wind down. Pick whatever you like: meditation, breathing exercises, light stretching, or simply close your eyes and take a quick power nap.
Recap
TL;DR? ELI5? No problem.
1) If you’re skinny, you’ll gain weight by eating more calories in than you burn. (If you have a caloric surplus, you’ll gain weight.)
2) Follow the basic rules of great nutrition so you can minimize unwanted fat and give yourself what you need for muscle growth and awesome performance in the gym.
3) Do strength training and cardio to build a lot of muscle while staying as lean as possible.
4) Finally, make sure to “sweat the small stuff:” get a good night of sleep every night AND take some time to relax.
By doing all this, you’ll look and feel like a boss on your big day, standing there with the love of your life. Years from now, you’ll look back on your wedding with pride because you did what it took to look your best.
Want to learn how to ACTUALLY put all this info together for great, ready-for-you workouts and easy-to-follow meal plans that get the great results you want? Sign up for our fitness e-course at The Plunge and get started on your body transformation today.
