Getting ripped isn’t easy—because if it were, all men would have chiseled chests and washboard abs.
But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to give yourself the body of your dreams. All it takes is some work on your part, and more importantly, the knowledge to know what to do and when to do it.
If you’re looking to shed fat and build muscle, you must follow these SEVEN steps:
1. Have a Meal Plan: The most important aspect of getting muscular and ripped is knowing WHAT to eat, HOW MUCH of it to eat, and WHEN to eat it. Here’s what I mean:
-Your body uses carbohydrates as fuel, but you don’t want to eat too many carbohydrates because any unburned carbs you consume will be stored as belly fat. However, you want to eat enough carbs so you don’t feel tired; your body—including your brain—needs carbs in order to properly function.
So how many carbs should you eat? In this case (wanting to get lean, yet muscular), around 15% of your calories should come from carbs.
Also, it’s best to have your carbs both during breakfast and directly after your workout is completed; adopting this principal will not only improve your workout, but will keep you from feeling sluggish afterwards.
-Protein is your pal, especially on off days. Protein helps repair and build muscle. And no—contrary to general knowledge—you don’t need a gram of protein for every pound of body weight—not unless you’re looking to be a bodybuilder. I believe .5 grams of protein for every pound of body weight is sufficient.
-Eat fat. Yes, that’s right! The notion that fat is bad is a misconception. In reality, your body needs you to consume a healthy level of fat because fat takes longer to digest, which results in curbing hunger. Also, fat is essential for hormone production.
-Stay away from sugar! Why? Because it’s the mortal enemy of shredded abs! And I’m not just referring to things like sweet cereals and candy, but milk, as well (you can get your protein from meat or whey).
-To get lean, vegetables are better than fruit. Why? Because fruit contains more sugar than the typical vegetable. Also, vegetables usually have a lower calorie-count than fruit.
2. Lift Weights: Weight training does two important things—it builds muscle and raises metabolism. And when your metabolism is raised, you burn more calories.
If your diet is correct, your heightened metabolism will burn your belly fat. Also, varying your weightlifting routine with different exercises, reps and weights will cause your muscles to continue to grow even larger (which not only looks great but: more muscle = more fat loss, for the more muscle you have, the more calories your body will burn).
3. Don’t Do Too Much Cardio: Doing the wrong kind of cardio can burn muscle and not fat. AND THAT’S NOT GOOD! So stay off that treadmill. Need proof? Look at a long distance runner. What do they look like? Do they have lots of muscles? Are they ripped?
Instead, look at a 100-meter sprinter. These guys are worth emulating, because they’re the ones with shredded abs and a muscular body. And why is this? Easy—interval training.
4. Do Interval Training: This training can be summed up as exercising hard in short spurts without much rest. It’s running 100-yards as hard as you can, dropping to the ground, and doing a set of pushups. It sounds tough and it is—but it’s also a great way to burn body fat.
5. Get Enough Rest: When you sleep, your body goes into recovery mode. Your muscles heal, your body produces important chemicals needed to excel (such as testosterone), and you’re recharging your body with energy renewal. When you get enough rest, you see better results.
Aim for 8-9 hours of sleep a night. Because when you don’t get enough sleep, your body releases cortisol—it’s a stress hormone that promotes body fat.
6. Stay Away From Alcohol: This pitfall deserves its own paragraph. And yes—I can admit it—alcohol is a great way to unwind and bond with friends. It makes us feel good. But alcohol also steals some of our gains we worked so hard to produce. How? Alcohol is guilty of the following:
-Your body will perform better when you’re hydrated. And alcohol is a diuretic—it dehydrates your body.
-Alcohol disrupts protein synthesis (feeding your muscles so they can recover properly) by hindering the absorption of protein in the body (and thus decreasing your recovery, resulting in less muscle gain).
-The next time you work out, your strength is negatively impacted due to the above two problems.
-When you’re out drinking, you’re probably getting less sleep because you’re out late. When this occurs, you’re at an increased risk of getting sick, because you’re not getting enough sleep and your immune system is compromised (due to dehydration and not enough sleep) .
-Alcohol contains calories! And if you’re having a mixed drink, such as a rum and Coke, you’re consuming the sugary soda calories, as well. Not good.
-Since your body can’t store alcohol, it must immediately metabolize it. Due to this, other metabolic processes suffer. And due to alcohol consumption, your body will be less efficient at metabolizing things like sugar and fat, resulting in a slowed metabolism.
-Alcohol lowers testosterone production! When you consume alcohol your liver releases chemicals that decrease levels of testosterone in your system. For this reason alone, I save alcohol only for special occasions.
7. Have An Effective Plan: I’m referring to everything—your meal plan, your weight lifting and interval training regime, etc.
No matter what, it’s ESSENTIAL you have a plan that not only produces results, but is realistic.
If you want to succeed and get muscular and ripped, you can’t grow tired of your plan; and for you to be successful, you must stick with it.
To combat getting bored with my workout, I perform different exercises using different weights and reps; it’s also the reason I take the time to vary my meal plan—so I don’t get tired of eating the same foods.
Having a strong, manageable plan, performing it, and sticking to it until you reach your goal is what will give you the body you want. I guarantee it. It’s what will get you muscular and ripped. And the sooner you begin, the sooner you’ll have your dream body.
I’ve shown you how to get a ripped body! If you’re serious about getting ripped, you should check out my review of The Adonis Golden Ratio by CLICKING HERE
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