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If you want to know how to build muscle, lose fat, and be healthier, happier, and wiser…faster than you ever thought possible…then this podcast is for you. Hosted by the bestselling author and entrepreneur, Mike Matthews, each episode gives you simple, science-based know-how and inspiration that will help you build your best body and life ever.
Find out more at www.legionathletics.com
Copyright: © Mike Matthews
Most people are preoccupied with trying to lose weight, but here’s something they don’t know:
It’s only the first step to getting the body they really want.
Because once you’ve lost the weight, you have to keep it off, and that can be just hard, if not harder.
That’s why research shows that dieting simply doesn’t work for most people. Sure, they can step into the breach and lose weight, but many regain it all afterward.
If you’ve dieted before, you probably know how it goes.
After months of restrictive eating and battling with hunger and cravings, it feels downright cathartic to stop worrying about every little calorie and just let go.
And it’s just a little horrifying to see just how quickly you can undo months of hard work when you do.
It’s also hard to forget that experience the next time you consider dieting. Why bother if you know you’re just going to tumble back to square one?
Well, that’s where reverse dieting can help.
It involves gradually increasing your calories after a period of caloric restriction, and with it, you can avoid accidental overeating (or, worse, bingeing), and unwanted fat gain.
You see, losing weight changes more than your appearance in the mirror.
It also produces a host of physiological adaptations that, in short, encourage you to move less and eat more, and prime your body to rapidly regain the fat that you lost.
This is why many people find it so hard to smoothly transition from weight loss to weight maintenance.
The good news, though, is if you navigate this treacherous post-diet period skillfully, you can come out unscathed, and poised for long-term success.
Reverse dieting is a powerful tool to help you with this, and it boils down to three simple steps:
1. Do a lot of heavy compound weightlifting.
2. Eat a high-protein diet.
3. Gradually increase your caloric intake.
Why can some people do things so much better than others?
There’s a question us humans have been wondering about for a very long time.
Many believe it’s due to extraordinary amounts of innate talent--that nature ultimately dictates who can do what and how well they can do it, and that our strengths and weaknesses are more or less immutable.
On the other hand, some people say that talent has very little to do with it, and that outstanding abilities can be mostly explained by hard work and dedication, which anyone has the capacity for.
This is a confusing topic for good reason. We’ve probably known people who have gotten very good at things without appearing to work very hard at it, as well as people who initially displayed absolutely no aptitude for something work tirelessly at it for years without ever becoming excellent.
What does this mean? That luck and randomness are the best predictors of success in any field and endeavor?
Well, according to my guest on today’s episode, Geoff Colvin, both talent and hard work don’t greatly correlate with acquiring top-tier abilities, a specific kind of work does: deliberate practice.
In his book, Talent is Overrated, Colvin explores every angle of this conundrum and uses interesting stories, scientific research, and personal experiences to make a compelling case for what it really takes to go from bad to good to great.
In this episode, Geoff and I discuss why “talent” is often an illusion, what deliberate practice is and isn’t, and how you can incorporate it into your life profitably, why the infamous 10,000 hour rule is misleading, and more.
6:21 - How important is natural born talent in the journey to become the best in your field?
15:06 - What is deliberate practice?
28:33- What drives people to become a master in their field?
34:32 - What is the 10,000 Hours Rule and is it true?
38:16 - How much deliberate practice does it take to master a skill?
43:18 - What are some techniques to improve memory?
50:00 - What is your new book about?
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Drinking enough water every day is like flossing.
It’s one of those “annoying” little habits that’s hard to embrace but pays big dividends.
“Wait…is flossing really that important?” you ask?
Surprisingly, yes.
Research shows that periodontal disease subjects the body to high levels of bacterial exposure, which increases the risk of heart disease.
Studies also show a strong association in the elderly between overall dental health and all-cause mortality (death from all causes).
So…floss every day! 🙂
(This floss by Oral B kick ass by the way–it’s strong, doesn’t fray, and doesn’t get stuck nearly as easily as others I’ve tried.)
Anywho, back to the subject at hand: how much water you should drink.
Water intake isn’t associated with all-cause mortality like gum health, but it’s still vitally important for optimizing health and performance.
The bottom line is if you’re currently not drinking enough water, you’re going to notice several immediate benefits by increasing intake to optimal levels.
In this episode, you’re going to learn about those benefits as well as how much water you should be drinking.
So let’s get to it!
Want to get my best advice on how to gain muscle and strength and lose fat faster? Sign up for my free newsletter!
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This episode is part of a weekly series that I have dubbed “Motivation Monday.”
(Yes, I know, very creative of me. What can I say, I’m a genius…)
Seriously though, the idea here is simple:
Every Monday morning, I’m going to post a short and punchy episode that I hope gets you fired up to tackle the workouts, work, and everything else that you have planned for the week ahead.
As we all know, it’s one thing to know what you want to do, but it’s something else altogether to actually make yourself do it, and I hope that this series gives you a jolt of inspiration, energy, and encouragement to get at it.
So, if you like what you hear, then make sure to check back every Monday morning for the latest and greatest installment.
Want to get my best advice on how to gain muscle and strength and lose fat faster? Sign up for my free newsletter!
Click here: www.muscleforlife.com/signup/
What determines the true limits of our physical performance?
It it mostly hard-wired physiological factors that can’t be changed, or is it more nuanced than that?
What about psychological factors? How much does the “inner game” affect the “outer game,” and how much is this under our control?
People have been searching for answers to these types of questions for decades now, and new research has provided some pretty surprising insights.
That’s why I wanted to talk to Alex Hutchinson, who’s been studying all of this for over a decade. In case you don’t know of Alex, he’s an award-winning science journalist, former physicist and national-class runner, regular columnist for publications like Runner’s World, Outside, and The New York Times, and in my opinion is one of the best fitness writers around.
He has a new book out called Endure that dives deep into the fascinating science of human performance and potential, and in this interview, he shares with us some of the key takeaways from the extensive research that went into the project as well as some highly practical strategies and techniques we can use to increase our capacity for physical and mental output.
4:58 - What are the latest studies on the physical limit for a human?
8:32 - How much does our mental dialogue effect our pain tolerance?
11:06 - How much of our physical pain is determined from preconceived ideas versus our thoughts during the moment?
12:25 - What are some psychological coping strategies to increase your pain tolerance?
15:07 - What is motivational self talk and does it enhance performance?
27:30- What is electric brain stimulation?
35:23 - What is an example of positive self talk?
39:15 - Does your psychological tolerance increase when your physical tolerance increases?
54:53 - Where can people follow you and find your work?
Want to get my best advice on how to gain muscle and strength and lose fat faster? Sign up for my free newsletter!
Click here: https://www.muscleforlife.com/signup/
Losing weight fast is really easy.
Eat as little food and do as much cardio as you can for the next month or two, and you’ll lose weight fast. I promise.
You might be disappointed in the end, though, even if you can suffer through it.
Why?
Because while the scale will proclaim a victory, the mirror will disagree. You may not look as fat as before, but you’re going to look more skinny fat, and that’s not the goal.
You see, the standard “starve yourself skinny” approach to dieting burns fat, but it also burns muscle, and that’s no good for your body composition.
That’s why your goal shouldn’t be to “lose weight,” but to “lose fat, and not muscle.”
And that’s what you’re going to learn about in this episode. You’re going to learn how to lose weight fast, but also how to do it in a way that preserves your muscle (and sanity).
It’s pretty easy, too. There are just five steps:
1. Use an aggressive (but not reckless) calorie deficit.
2. Eat a high-protein diet.
3. Do a lot of heavy compound weightlifting.
4. Use high-intensity interval training to burn fat faster.
5. Take fat loss supplements that actually work.
Let’s go over each.
Want to get my best advice on how to gain muscle and strength and lose fat faster? Sign up for my free newsletter!
Click here: https://www.muscleforlife.com/signup/
The fitness industry is extremely tough to navigate as a beginner because of the sheer amount of “gurus” proclaiming they have the “secrets” to getting ripped.
If you hit the popular fitness sites, you’ll find contradictory advice at every turn.
-Some people say you have to eat bland “clean” foods to get ripped, while others will say you can do it eating junk food.
-Some say you should focus on higher rep “pump” training, while others say you have to focus on heavy lifting.
-Some say you have to eat meals every few hours, while others say meal frequency is irrelevant.
-Some say high-protein diets are key, while others say it’s not that important.
-Some say genetics play a huge role, while others say they’re barely a factor.
How can you know who’s right and who’s wrong? How can you know who to listen to?
Well, I used to wrestle with all these issues and have not only escaped the maze but, ironically, have become something of a fitness guru myself. In this episode, I want to share with you 5 criteria you can use to judge if someone is worth listening to or not.
Let’s get started.
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Imagine if you could fall asleep easily and quickly.
Imagine if you slept deeper and didn’t wake up several times per night.
Imagine waking up feeling rested, restored, and rejuvenated.
Well, this isn’t supposed to be a fantasy. In fact, it’s how your body is programmed to work.
Unfortunately, though, we can screw this programming up through simple, innocent mistakes.
Many people making these mistakes and, unwittingly, turn to hypnotics and sedatives to combat their sleep troubles.
This opens the door to some rather serious side effects, such as…
-Depression
-Delirium
-Nightmares
-Hallucinations
-An increased risk of infections, cancer, and overall mortality.
Not to mention problems relating to drug tolerance, which necessitates ever-increasing prescriptions and dosages.
The good news, though, is many people experiencing sleep troubles don’t need drugs to get a good night’s sleep.
Instead, they just need to change some of their daily habits and routines.
And that’s what you’re going to get from this episode: 7 science-based strategies to get more and better shuteye.
Want to get my best advice on how to gain muscle and strength and lose fat faster? Sign up for my free newsletter!
Click here: https://www.muscleforlife.com/signup/
This episode is part of a weekly series that I have dubbed “Motivation Monday.”
(Yes, I know, very creative of me. What can I say, I’m a genius…)
Seriously though, the idea here is simple:
Every Monday morning, I’m going to post a short and punchy episode that I hope gets you fired up to tackle the workouts, work, and everything else that you have planned for the week ahead.
As we all know, it’s one thing to know what you want to do, but it’s something else altogether to actually make yourself do it, and I hope that this series gives you a jolt of inspiration, energy, and encouragement to get at it.
So, if you like what you hear, then make sure to check back every Monday morning for the latest and greatest installment.
Want to get my best advice on how to gain muscle and strength and lose fat faster? Sign up for my free newsletter!
Click here: www.muscleforlife.com/signup/
Today I talk with Steve Magness, an elite-level runner, running coach, exercise physiologist, and author.
His latest book, Peak Performance, is a detailed and practical overview of the science of optimizing your mental and physical performance, and in this interview, we discuss some of the key takeaways from the book, including how to use stress and recovery to stimulate progress and growth, how to prime and prepare yourself for optimal performance, and how to avoid overwhelm and burnout.
Here’s a little sneak peek of what we talk about:
- How much “deep work” can we really do in a day?
- A handful of simple recovery strategies we can use in our day-to-day lives.
- How self-talk affects our mental and physical state.
- How we can positively change the way we view and react to stress.
And more…
4:30 - What is the stress and recovery model and is it effective?
9:00 - How much time should people do deep work per day?
15:48 - What are some recovery strategies we can use in our day-to-day life?
21:49 - How can we change the way we react to stress?
24:48 - What is tend-and-befriend?
29:40 - How does self talk affect our mental and physical state?
31:37 - What is an example of positive self talk?
56:10 - Where can people follow you and find your work?
Want to get my best advice on how to gain muscle and strength and lose fat faster? Sign up for my free newsletter!
Click here: https://www.muscleforlife.com/signup/
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