With fat loss, everyone wants non-stop progress. Preferably lightning fast, too. And while we’re asleep, if possible. Expecting such speedy results isn’t totally off base. Fact is, many have experienced it—at least for a while. Think back to when you first started lifting or got your diet in order. Maybe you dropped five pounds in the first week or added weight to the bar every workout. It’s...

I’ve moved again recently, but I used to start every day working in my office. And every morning, I’d notice an overweight middle-aged couple pass by the window, out on their daily walk. I don't think they've ever missed a day. Rain, sleet, shine, or colder than a witch's tit. They’d pass by. I suppose, if my eyes were better or my stalker skills more refined, I could have scoped them out to...

I turned 50 a few months back. Honestly, I didn’t make much of it—birthdays start getting old once you start "getting old." However, I do think there’s something special about turning 50 and being in decent shape. Certainly in the real world. There are just not that many fit, jacked 50-somethings roaming around out there. Seriously—it’s a night & day difference from being yoked at 40. Throw...

The more daily rituals you have, the easier it is to relax and execute at a high level. Examples might be: * Regular sleep/wake times * The morning dog walk * Making the same breakfast * Consistent workout times * Bedtime reading with the kid It’s not really WHAT you do that matters—it’s having a set cadence of tasks that establish a rhythm. The cool thing is, over time, you’ll find you have...

So you want to build muscle, but keep hearing that you should get lean first. Is that BS? Not really, but there's nuance behind the practice. Gurus often say you have to be lean before you try to add muscle. Some even give targets, like under 10% body fat. Why? Broadly speaking, the leaner you get, the more insulin-sensitive you are. This leads to better nutrition partitioning with surplus...

"Health Washing" is a pet peeve for many health advocates. It's when marketers try to position highly processed packaged foods as "healthy" by slapping irrelevant or dubious nutritional claims on the label such as "100% natural, gluten-free, fortified, made with real food, etc." It’s an underhand practice that preys on people’s desire to improve the quality of the foods they eat. Although I pity...

Progress photos aren't a requirement to lose fat. Sure, they help. But a great coach can get a good idea of what’s going on just by monitoring how well you nail the daily process, combined with a few basic measurements and feedback on how well your clothes are fitting. But if you do take photos—excluding someone VERY lean and/or preparing for a physique contest—MORE frequent is seldom better....