Elite Physique The New Science of Building a Better Body

Man With a Plan
35
have a negative effect on your sex hormones (i.e., testosterone). So you can imagine
how challenging it will be to gain muscle and lose fat if you have to combat
work, family, or financial stressors. You must consider these factors when setting
goals for yourself. Expect your best results to occur only during the times you
can adhere to the program, manage emotional stress, and get at least eight hours
of sleep each night, which we cover in greater detail in chapter 12.
Prioritizing Your Goals
So now it’s time to prioritize. If you see plenty of fat around your midsection,
losing it should be your priority because a host of benefits will follow. When you
lose fat, you will look more muscular in the mirror even if you didn’t add any
muscle tissue. And losing belly fat will improve your insulin sensitivity, which
makes it less likely that you’ll gain fat in the future (Clamp et al. 2017). If you’re
lean enough to see all but your lower abdominals, and if you haven’t been doing
much resistance or aerobic training, the guidelines in this book to gain muscle
and conditioning might be sufficient to remove that last bit of fat around your
lower abdomen without drastically changing your diet (assuming it’s a relatively
healthy one). In any case, you need to be realistic. Decide whether you want your
primary goal to be more muscle or less fat. And if you’re unsure, the following
steps will help you start on the right path.
Step 1: Determine why you want to achieve the goal.
Many of you reading this book will want to achieve six-pack abs so you can look
great with your shirt off. But in my 25 years of experience transforming physiques,
I’ve learned that knowing your goal isn’t enough. You must understand why you
want that six-pack. This is the time to think deeply and have a clear answer,
regardless of how inane it might seem to someone who’s not in your shoes.
In my early years as a personal trainer I assumed everyone wanted a ripped
midsection just to look better to a potential mate. I was definitely wrong. There
are countless examples I could give here, but one worth mentioning is a guy
I trained who, as usual, wanted a six-pack midsection. When I asked why, he
replied, “I’ve spent $20,000 on a wardrobe I currently can’t wear, so I need my
midsection slim enough to once again fit into all those clothes.”
Step 2: Determine how much time you can realistically devote to exercise
each week.
One of the first questions I ask my patients is, how many days per week can
you guarantee you will be able to train, barring any catastrophe? That training
frequency is what I use to create the program, even if I know more sessions per
week would provide quicker results. Indeed, there is no use in having a program
that requires four workouts per week if you can guarantee that you’ll do only two.
But many people have unrealistic expectations of their own capabilities when
excited about embarking on a new program. They’ll say things such as, “Well, I
can find a babysitter for an extra evening each week to get to the gym” or “My
boss will probably let me leave work early on Fridays so I can fit in my workout.”
These are the times I see the potential for problems. Words such as if and
probably are red flags.
In chapters 8 through 10 we cover programs with a range of frequencies, from
two to six days per week. Choose the program you know you will be able to