http://www.adonisindex.com Targetted Muscle Building and Fat Burning Systems for the Perfect Physique Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:45:39 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Quit being frustrated and get the body you deserve. Take our hard hitting, free range tested advice and put our simple strategies to work for you. If you're looking for targeted muscle building and fat burning knowledge, you're in the right place. We're rated high for a reason, we get you the RESULTS you want. No fluff. Subscribe today! Brad Howard, John Barban no Brad Howard, John Barban askbradhoward@gmail.com askbradhoward@gmail.com (Brad Howard, John Barban) Copyright 2010, Adonis Lifestyle LLC, All Rights Reserved Targeted Muscle Building and Fat Burning Advice for a Perfect Physique health, muscle building, fat loss, weight loss, men, fasting, muscle growth, exercise, wellness, self help, bodybuilding, fat burning http://www.adonisindex.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/ADONIS-Lifestyle.jpg http://www.adonisindex.com/category/contest/ http://www.adonisindex.com/do-you-want-to-be-200-lbs/ http://www.adonisindex.com/do-you-want-to-be-200-lbs/#comments Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:00:14 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2721 http://www.adonisindex.com/do-you-want-to-be-200-lbs/feed/ 0 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest Today we have an interview with Shan Hefley, who placed second in the Open category in the latest Adonis Index Contest. - Check out his photos: "...I Just Wanted to Get Bigger, Then I Read Adonis Index." Today we have an interview with Shan Hefley, who placed second in the Open category in the latest Adonis Index Contest. Check out his photos: "...I Just Wanted to Get Bigger, Then I Read Adonis Index." Shan started working out at an ea... Brad Howard, John Barban no 49:06 http://www.adonisindex.com/personal-trainer-fitness-industry-truth/ http://www.adonisindex.com/personal-trainer-fitness-industry-truth/#comments Mon, 23 Jan 2012 14:00:11 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2760 http://www.adonisindex.com/personal-trainer-fitness-industry-truth/feed/ 0 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest,Adonis Index Transformation Today with have an interview with Blair Baxter and he placed 5th in the latest Adonis Index Transformation Contest. - Check out his before and after pictures: - Blair is a personal trainer and in the interview he says that he's probably let a... Today with have an interview with Blair Baxter and he placed 5th in the latest Adonis Index Transformation Contest. Check out his before and after pictures: Blair is a personal trainer and in the interview he says that he's probably let a few people down, because he has given advice that he now understands was useless. He openly admits the fitness industry is pretty pathetic and leaves us with more questions than answers. He always thought that he needed to eat every three hours or his body will go into a starvation mode. It's an irony that at college he pretty much understood how the body works, when he wanted to lose fat, he just cut out the calories and instinctively ate less. Without any nutritional courses he knew that it's just about calories in and calories out. Later on when he started following the fitness magazines he got mislead and bought into the whole bodybuilding lifestyle. Blair's Experience with the Adonis Index Being a personal trainer made the decision to start following the Adonis Index workout a bit tough. Blair just wouldn't want to follow a different training routine, after all he was fully capable of designing his own effective workout. He would follow the Eat Stop Eat and Anything Goes Diet principles, but not the workout, he felt like it wouldn't work and he knows better. He was predicting that his shoulders would hurt, that it would not help him build any more muscle mass and it seemed too complicated to him. He was just sitting at his gym and finding excuses why he didn't want to follow this training program. It took him a while to get his mind over the fact that he is going to do somebody else's program and not change anything. But Blair saw the pictures of the previous contestants and he knew that if this worked for so many guys before him, it would work for him too. So he decided to put his ego away and just try it for three months. Blair said that he works out not because he likes working out, but because he likes the results. However, in the past he was usually jumping from program to program every month. For the first time he was able to stick to one program alone and finish it. The basic Adonis Index program changes so often with so much variety because more variety and change keeps the program interesting and helps you to stick to it for longer periods of time. Make no mistake, this is completely by design. We know that most people have a very short attention span with their workouts and half the battle with designing a good workout is keeping you interested in it long enough to see the results. If You Want to Show the Work You've Done in the Gym You Have to Eat Less Blair was amazed by the results of just eating less, his muscles were actually starting to show up. He always thought he is supposed to just bulk up otherwise he would lose muscle. Now he was doing exactly the opposite and surprisingly enough, it worked. In reality the muscles were always there, but covered by fat. In the past there were a few attempts to lean out, but after a while he would always think that he is getting too small, so he would start bulking again. Now he has quite a different perspective. Here is how he put it: "When you feel like you are getting too small and you are almost there you have to keep going". And that comes from somebody who spent a good chunk of his life bulking up. The permission to be light seems to be a big challenge for most guys, especially for those not used to being lean and light. But truth to be told, no matter how it feels or what you now think, being big and heavy doesn't equal being a bigger man, that is not how it works. And while Blair was afraid that he will disappear if he drops a few more pounds, he persisted thanks to support of his friend that got him to Adonis Index in the first place and got himself a fine placing in the transformation contest. It may not make any sense to you now, Brad Howard, John Barban no 59:33 http://www.adonisindex.com/lose-100-pounds-get-ripped/ http://www.adonisindex.com/lose-100-pounds-get-ripped/#comments Mon, 16 Jan 2012 16:00:43 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2688 http://www.adonisindex.com/lose-100-pounds-get-ripped/feed/ 0 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest Today we bring you an interview with Dan Richardson who placed 4th in the Open Division in the last Adonis Index Contest. - Check out his pictures: - This is not the first competition Dan placed in. Today we bring you an interview with Dan Richardson who placed 4th in the Open Division in the last Adonis Index Contest. Check out his pictures: This is not the first competition Dan placed in. Right now he has three contest under his be... Brad Howard, John Barban no 45:03 http://www.adonisindex.com/at7-7th-adonis-index-contest-announced/ http://www.adonisindex.com/at7-7th-adonis-index-contest-announced/#comments Thu, 12 Jan 2012 15:49:39 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2731 http://www.adonisindex.com/at7-7th-adonis-index-contest-announced/feed/ 0 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-herman-interview/ http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-herman-interview/#comments Mon, 09 Jan 2012 12:00:49 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2613 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-herman-interview/feed/ 5 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest,adonis index transformation contest Herman Douglas placed 3rd in the Sixth Adonis Index Contest in the Open category. - Check out his photos: - Herman has been working out since 9th grade, so he's a pretty experienced lifter. While he has a lot of experience in the gym, Herman Douglas placed 3rd in the Sixth Adonis Index Contest in the Open category. Check out his photos: Herman has been working out since 9th grade, so he's a pretty experienced lifter. While he has a lot of experience in the gym, he was never in a really exceptional shape. And because he was afraid of losing all the muscle he ate a lot of calories that in reality prevented him from losing any fat. Herman is 5'9'' and was always scared of being lighter than 200 pounds. Like he said, it is pretty ridiculous to think that somebody his height should weight that much. If you are working out that sort of weight can look good in a shirt that perception drastically changes when you take it off. For Herman it wasn't until his wife took some pictures of him, especially of his back. Only then he realized how much fat really is on his body. Most guys never really care how they look from the back and focus on the mirror look only. When Herman saw that there is a lot of fat hiding from him or from what he can see in a mirror, he was really surprised. He thought he was in much better shape. After a friend introduced him to the Adonis Index he started to wonder if this new approach would get him some results. It still took him some time to get over the fact that he needed to drop not just 10 pounds, but really somewhere around 30 pounds of fat to get in decent shape. Stop Using Weight as a Fitness Indicator A lot of guys think that they need to get to 200 pounds and while it's impossible for the vast majority of guys to be that heavy while being lean, there is no need for that either. If you think you need to get big and hit the 200 mark as soon as possible, you are looking at it from the wrong perspective. Ask yourself this: "Do I want to look good and enjoy all the benefits of having a killer looking body?" If so then stop focusing on getting bigger and rather take a look at yourself and concentrate on a specific shape and proportions. Shape and proportion are what matters and what will determine whether you are in good shape or not, not how much you weigh. There are several issues with using weight as an indicator whether you look good or not. Weight itself tells you nothing. Weight is directly proportional to your height. A 6'4'' NBA player will have genetic potential for building more muscle mass than an average 5'10 gym rat. So setting up a weight goal without considering other factors just points out on a lack of perspective. Be different from other guys and don't set your goal for weight gain, focus on the ideal shape and proportions instead. When Herman first heard from his friend that he should be 30 pounds lighter, he wasn't ready or in a state to hear such advice. The idea of being over 200 lbs was still in his head and he was afraid of letting it go. He was happy with the weight and he looked good in clothes. He just didn't want to admit to himself what was really going on. He, like many other guys was scared that what he believes may not be true and didn't want to shatter his belief system. It took him a while, but seeing his friend getting in shape, he decided to give this new idea a shot and at the end he is glad he did. What Herman Did to Get in Shape Once he got over the belief that he needed to be heavy, he could start eating less calories and actually lose weight. At first he needed to lose a lot, so he was eating roughly 1000 calories per day, however this was getting tougher every week and he was forced to raise his caloric intake and he gradually went from 1000 to 1800 over the next couple of weeks. And this is something you can expect to happen, if you have a lot of fat to lose (let's say 30 pounds) then at the beginning you will be able to eat very low, however as you progress and get leaner, you will have to start eating more and more and slightly optimize to maintenance once you get to a single digit body fat number. Brad Howard, John Barban no 32:00 http://www.adonisindex.com/commitment-equals-results/ http://www.adonisindex.com/commitment-equals-results/#comments Mon, 02 Jan 2012 14:00:19 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2636 http://www.adonisindex.com/commitment-equals-results/feed/ 0 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest,Adonis Index Transformation Today's interview is with Andrew Peters, who won the sixth Adonis Index Transformation Contest. - Check out his pictures: - Andrew is 24 and has spent the past few years playing rugby and lifting weights, Today's interview is with Andrew Peters, who won the sixth Adonis Index Transformation Contest. Check out his pictures: Andrew is 24 and has spent the past few years playing rugby and lifting weights, however his training lacked struc... Brad Howard, John Barban no 31:50 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-open-contest-winner-tips/ http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-open-contest-winner-tips/#comments Mon, 26 Dec 2011 16:00:43 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2566 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-open-contest-winner-tips/feed/ 0 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest,adonis index transformation contest Today's podcast is very special. It's an interview with the Adonis Index Open Contest winner Ryan Williams. - Ryan has been on board for several months now and he didn't have a long way to go, but he definitely took it to the next level. - Today's podcast is very special. It's an interview with the Adonis Index Open Contest winner Ryan Williams. Ryan has been on board for several months now and he didn't have a long way to go, but he definitely took it to the next level. Check out his pictures:   Ryan thought that it's near to impossible to get ripped and look like a Hollywood action movie star. He thought that it would require a very strict lifestyle and an incredible amount of work, which would be impossible to fit into his work schedule which requires a lot of traveling. However, with two kids (six and two year old), wife and regular trips across continents he managed to get in a great shape, a cover model shape you would say. The best part? He is willing to share how he did it. You have a chance to learn how he planned his workout, structured his diet and the other stuff he did to get in shape, you can take his best tricks and tweak them to fit to your own lifestyle. New Approach Got Him Results Ryan revealed that before finding the Adonis Index he was eating a lot, definitely more than his body could burn. He, like many other guys, thought that he can muscle his way to leanness, he thought that if he got big enough and built enough muscle, his metabolism would be so fast that it would burn all the fat on his body. On top of that in the past he read in a fitness magazine that he should never eat below 2000 calories. He never really weighed himself, but Ryan's estimate is that at one time he must have been way over 200 pounds, probably even close to 250. It wasn't until he found Eat Stop Eat and Adonis Index that he realized this is probably not the best approach to take to get in shape. Probably the biggest revelation for Ryan was that he could just diet once and stay like that forever, just do some micro diet management for maintenance and that would be it. He set his daily calories intake at 1800 calories and added two fasts on top of that. He wasn't counting calories, he was doing more of calorie guessing and just eye balling the food to know the rough calorie content. In the past he never followed a real muscle building program either. It was always just a mix of bodybuilding splits that he thought he should do from what he read in fitness magazines. In his own words: "I just trained the mirror muscles, that was it." The biggest shock once he started doing the Adonis Index workouts was of course the training volume. He thought that he was over-training and doubted that he could do it. However, after a few weeks the soreness went away and he realized that it wasn't over-training, but rather under-conditioning, he just wasn't used to such a physical stress before, so his muscles needed some time to get accustomed to such a high volume and intensity of training. Another important fact Ryan mentions in the interview is the importance of periodization, which is crucial, because if you don't change your workout often enough, you will get bored and you will not enjoy your workouts. And how do you plan on sticking to something if you don't enjoy it? You Need to Have a Flexible Approach Ryan said that what got him hooked about Adonis Index was the fact that it is oriented on aesthetics and proportions, the goal isn't to just get big, but to actually achieve a specific shape. Ryan is an opera singer and sometimes he needs to perform without his shirt on, in the past he would do some crazy strict fitness stuff like eating six times a day, eating tons of protein, because he was afraid of losing his muscles for the show and training a lot. Basically this made him a slave to his diet and gym routine for the sake of looking good on stage, however after the show he would always go back to looking pretty average. The big mind shift came once he tried the program. Six months is all he needed to get in the best shape of his life (sounds like something several previous contestants have in common). Brad Howard, John Barban no 43:09 http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-young-gun-interview-with-vaclav-gregor/ http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-young-gun-interview-with-vaclav-gregor/#comments Tue, 20 Dec 2011 14:41:20 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2603 http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-young-gun-interview-with-vaclav-gregor/feed/ 0 contest interview Many guys lift their first weights when they're in their late teens. This is a great time to start working out because you can leverage juvenile muscle growth as well as your workout induced muscle growth... Many guys lift their first weights when they're in their late teens. This is a great time to start working out because you can leverage juvenile muscle growth as well as your workout induced muscle growth...but it only works if you know what you're doing in the gym. Just showing up and lifting whatever weights you can find in whatever pattern you can find will not produce the results you want. Having a structured workout plan is critical to maximizing the effort you put in the gym. Many young guys have the effort but not the plan, this is like taking two steps forward and one step backwards and can lead to serious frustration. The plan is just as critical as the effort. A quote to remember: "The key to success is the combination of determination and intelligent effort" Just going to the gym and pushing hard isn't enough, you gotta combine that effort with an effective plan. An effective plan starts with a clearly stated goal. If that goal is to improve the look and shape of your body then you gotta get on a plan that will move you in that direction. Building muscle will be a critical part of this. Key take home points for guys starting out on a workout program: Focus on form and technique and never sacrifice form for weight Get clear on your specific goals Follow a plan that moves you towards your specific goal Don't waste time in the gym, ever minute in there matters Forget what other people say, it's your body your program, your rules, and your results Don't get caught up jumping from one workout to the next, follow one plan until it's done Remember that effort and determination isn't enough you must apply it intelligently for success   LISTEN:   Brad Howard, John Barban no 43:04 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-contest-winners-announced/ http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-contest-winners-announced/#comments Mon, 05 Dec 2011 16:32:05 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2499 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-contest-winners-announced/feed/ 16 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-final-pictures-coaching-call/ http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-final-pictures-coaching-call/#comments Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:36:57 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2451 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-final-pictures-coaching-call/feed/ 0 AT6 Final Pictures,Taking After Pictures AT6 The 6th Adonis Index transformation and open contests are in the final stretch and it's time to get prepped for your final pictures. - All of the poses from the posing tutorial are mandatory if you think you have a chance at being placed in the open c... The 6th Adonis Index transformation and open contests are in the final stretch and it's time to get prepped for your final pictures. All of the poses from the posing tutorial are mandatory if you think you have a chance at being placed in the open category. You can review the posing tutorial video here: POSING TUTORIAL VIDEO We've outlined some ideas to consider for your final pictures in a previous podcast that you can review and listen to here: TAKING 'AFTER' PICTURES I strongly encourage you to listen to some interviews of past winners to get an idea of how to take an effective after picture. What needs to be submitted: 1. All mandatory poses including front, back and side shots with the front page of the current days newspaper visible in at least one shot. You will also need to do all the poses from posing tutorial video if you think you have a chance of placing in the open category of the contest. 2. Label each picture with your first and last name as well as the pose ex: "John_Doe_Front_Pose" 3. Write a 250 word essay describing your experience with our system and through the contest 4. Complete the contest data chart that you downloaded at the start of the contest, this includes your waist, height and shoulder measurements from before the contest and your final measurements, along with your ideal AI measurements for your height and how close you got to them. 5. Re-size your after pictures so they are approximately 500 pixels in height for the ones you submit (make sure you keep the original picture in it's original larger size for your records, also if you end up winning our cover model competition we will need the bigger picture file as well) 6. Compress all of these materials in a zipped file and send it to my email johnbarban (at) gmail (dot) com no later than midnight EST Nov 23rd. John   Brad Howard, John Barban no 15:18 http://www.adonisindex.com/ripped-without-counting-calories-or-doing-cardio/ http://www.adonisindex.com/ripped-without-counting-calories-or-doing-cardio/#comments Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:00:28 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2273 http://www.adonisindex.com/ripped-without-counting-calories-or-doing-cardio/feed/ 4 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest,Brad Pilon,Cardio,Counting Calories,eat stop eat Brad Greyeyes Brant has a very interesting name, but what is even more interesting than his name is the fact that he placed 4th in the Adonis Index Contest specifically in the transformation category. - He went from being lean to being ripped, Brad Greyeyes Brant has a very interesting name, but what is even more interesting than his name is the fact that he placed 4th in the Adonis Index Contest specifically in the transformation category. He went from being lean to being ripped, just take a look: When Brant first got interested in getting his physique handled he was 260 pounds. Even though he is 6'5'', 26o pounds is a lot. At this point even taking stairs was starting to be an issue. Just take a look at how Brant looked at this weight several years ago. After looking at himself in a mirror Brant decided to get in shape. And he started as most guys would, he found some muscle building and fat loss programs designed by a bodybuilder, he signed up for them and followed it for about six months. He was doing about an hour of cardio each morning seven times a week. He was training at specific times of the day, if the program said go to the gym at 5 p.m., he would go at 5 p.m. He was timing his meals to the minute, always made sure he ate every three hours no matter where he was or what he was doing. Even though his wife was very supportive, this approach was incredibly inflexible. Could you imagine not being able to eat your birthday cake? Or have a Christmas dinner with your family? This is exactly what he did. Brant is the type of guy who is all out or nothing at all. He though that his approach was a sign of dedication, but in reality what it really was, was an obsession. He Found Out He Can Enjoy His Life & Look Good at the Same Time After a while Brant came across Brad Pilon's blog and once he read what Brad eats during his day he was completely confused. Because Brad is in exceptional shape and he eats like an average person (some would even say like a kid), brownies, pizza and pasta are regular foods in his meal plan. In his schedule there was nothing about eating every three hours, having protein with each meal or preparing his meals upfront. Brad was just saying that he is enjoying his food and that the only thing he aims for is to limit the amount of calories to keep lean. On his blog he noticed the workout Pilon was doing and he decided to give it a try. He bought the Adonis Index Workout and started following it. Brant never wanted to look like a huge bodybuilder, so the Adonis Index philosophy of building a proportioned body with lean waist and visible six pack abs was something he was interested to build for himself. He gave the workouts a shot and after seeing the results never looked back It's all about what you truly want. Is it a really good looking body or do you want to be strong and focus on performance? What do you really want? Brant has chosen the look and even though he made this choice ironically he is stronger than ever. However, you still need to know what you are after. Most guys really want to just look good, strength and performance is secondary but many guys cannot separate the two ideas. If you have the same problem with getting over the goal of becoming stronger, you need to understand something. Strength is relative and specific to only those exercises you do on regular basis. For example you can get really good at incline dumbbell press, but completely suck on regular barbell bench press. Another example, Brant’s dad is incredibly strong, because he is used to doing physical work, however he can’t do a pull-up. On the other hand Brant is not as strong as his dad overall, but pull-ups are not an issue for him. Strength is relative. And if you are not a competitive power lifter then there is no point in aiming for strength for it's own sake. Set the goal of improving your physique and the strength will come along with it. Brant's Tips to Get Contest Ripped Brant placed 4h in the contest and that is an incredible accomplishment and requires a big amount of effort. Let’s take a look at what it is that Brad did that was different from other contestants. Brad Howard, John Barban no 40:12 http://www.adonisindex.com/fat-loss-journey/ http://www.adonisindex.com/fat-loss-journey/#comments Mon, 31 Oct 2011 16:00:18 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2229 http://www.adonisindex.com/fat-loss-journey/feed/ 5 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest,adonis index podcast,fat loss,Lose fat,losing fat Al Sandoval placed FIRST in the Adonis Index Contest in the transformation category. Al found a way to lose fat that he put on in the last 20 years. At the end of 12 weeks he managed to beat everybody else and win the whole transformation contest. - Al Sandoval placed FIRST in the Adonis Index Contest in the transformation category. Al found a way to lose fat that he put on in the last 20 years. At the end of 12 weeks he managed to beat everybody else and win the whole transformation contest. T... Brad Howard, John Barban no 30:31 http://www.adonisindex.com/eat-hamburge-lose-pounds-of-fat/ http://www.adonisindex.com/eat-hamburge-lose-pounds-of-fat/#comments Mon, 24 Oct 2011 14:00:59 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2224 http://www.adonisindex.com/eat-hamburge-lose-pounds-of-fat/feed/ 11 adonis index,Adonis Index Contest,adonis index podcast,Lose 18 Pounds of Fat Nick Yarbrough placed second in the Adonis Index Contest in the Open category. Nick's after pictures are incredible. You would not guess that he is only 21 years old. His muscles really show in these photos and he is living proof that with effort comes... Nick Yarbrough placed second in the Adonis Index Contest in the Open category. Nick's after pictures are incredible. You would not guess that he is only 21 years old. His muscles really show in these photos and he is living proof that with effort comes... Brad Howard, John Barban no 25:35 http://www.adonisindex.com/build-muscles-from-protein-powder/ http://www.adonisindex.com/build-muscles-from-protein-powder/#comments Mon, 17 Oct 2011 10:00:06 +0000 admin http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2203 http://www.adonisindex.com/build-muscles-from-protein-powder/feed/ 7 adonis index,adonis index workout,Adonis Transformation Contest,arm muscles,back muscles,muscle growth,muscle mass,Muscles Calvin Chen is one of the younger guys who entered the Adonis Index Contest. He placed 5th in the transformation class. - Apart from Mike, who was interviewed last week and was focusing mostly on fat loss, Calvin Chen is one of the younger guys who entered the Adonis Index Contest. He placed 5th in the transformation class. Apart from Mike, who was interviewed last week and was focusing mostly on fat loss, Calvin needed to build muscle and that's exactly what he did. 12 weeks is a very short period of time to build muscle. Calvin had the advantage of juvenile muscle growth. You can check it yourself, here are his before and after pictures.       It's obvious that Calvin has built bigger shoulders, this is because Adonis Index Workouts are focused on building upper body width. Calvin is a college student, so he doesn't have much of a training background yet. Before he found the Adonis Index, he started like most young guys. He was lifting some dumbbells at home, he didn't have any good program to follow, he did everything just learning from fitness magazines. He trained only his bicep, triceps and chest. This is probably one of the most common mistakes - not having a proper workout program to follow. If you look around yourself in the gym, you will see that most of the guys don't look that good and don't have a quality plan at all. Obviously this training is good only if you want to lift something...anything, but if you want to actually see any change in muscle mass, you have to take a different approach. What you need is this, a workout program that: Is designed to help you achieve your goals (performance OR look) Has variety of reps and sets Has fixed rest periods (This makes a big difference as far as intensity goes.) Requires mostly free weights (dumbbells and barbells) If the purpose is to look better, it should focus more on your shoulders and back rather than arms and legs. During the 12 weeks Calvin did the most difficult task - build muscle. It's easy to strip off the fat in 12 weeks, but to build muscle? Not so much. Usually you will see only little change in muscle growth in such a short period of time. Building muscles takes years of dedicated training. Calvin's advantage was through his juvenile muscle growth. If you are his age (19) and you are not yet working out, you should start as soon as possible, because this is when you can get the best gains. This is as close to a steroid effect as you can naturally get. A lot of older guys beat themselves up, because they started late, the difference in the possible physique if you start young is huge. Average Protein Intake Was Enough Nowadays almost every guy is obsessed with protein intake. It seems that we are so affected by advertisements that we feel something Brad Pilon calls protein guilt. It's really hard to avoid this. Most of the guys try to eat as much meat, eggs and protein foods as possible and supplement it with protein shakes on top of that. But is this really necessary? Calvin views protein intake differently. He was following Pilon's advice from the book How Much Protein. He didn't watch or track his protein intake, the only thing he knew exactly is that he took 52 grams of protein powder each day and that's it. Based on his diet, his protein intake was around 80-100 grams, which goes against the conventional wisdom of eating 150-200 grams a day to build muscle. Calvin didn't even worry about calorie intake. To prevent from gaining fat, he was eating mostly fruits and vegetables and regularly fasting. Not exactly something you would find in a fitness magazine. And all this obviously worked for him. He gained several pounds of muscle, and is no longer called skinny and is definitely on the right track. Here is the take away for skinny guys who are interested in gaining more muscles in a short period of time: If you don't have the experience don't create your own workouts based on advice from fitness magazines and bodybuilding forums, find a professional workout program that is designed to help you achieve your goals Be consistent with your workouts Brad Howard, John Barban no 35:14 http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-coaching-call/ http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-coaching-call/#comments Wed, 28 Sep 2011 10:00:54 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2163 http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-coaching-call/feed/ 0 Coaching Call,Contest,podcast It's been approximately 4 weeks into the 6th Adonis Index transformation contest and it's a perfect time to do an inventory of what has been working and what needs some work. - If weight loss is your issue you have to remind yourself that the process ... It's been approximately 4 weeks into the 6th Adonis Index transformation contest and it's a perfect time to do an inventory of what has been working and what needs some work. If weight loss is your issue you have to remind yourself that the process is not linear. Some weeks are going to go really smooth and others are going to be a lot bumpier. Muscle building is the same thing, some weeks just feel like a lot more progress is happening than others. This is sometimes tough to deal with as your  daily and weekly effort seems to feel linear and consistent even though your results are not. The key at this point is recognizing that the path has it's ups and downs and to be consistent over the long term. Twelve weeks is going to go by in a flash. Finding a groove is important and sticking with the parts that are working is going to keep you moving forward. Give yourself some room for change, but don't try to change everything at once. Review your list of what is working and what needs changing, pick the one or two most important things that need to change and make a plan. Give it about 1-2 weeks to see if what you're changing is working then move on. If something doesn't work, discard it and try something else. Remember that this process is not perfect or smooth, it's a controlled stumble forward. In todays coaching call we'll cover what to do at the quarter contest point and how to set up your inventory list, and how to think your way through the next 4 weeks of the contest. John LISTEN TO THE COACHING CALL: Brad Howard, John Barban no 37:00 http://www.adonisindex.com/the-evolution-of-an-adonis-interview-with-jason-gottlieb-part-2/ http://www.adonisindex.com/the-evolution-of-an-adonis-interview-with-jason-gottlieb-part-2/#comments Wed, 21 Sep 2011 16:00:32 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2133 http://www.adonisindex.com/the-evolution-of-an-adonis-interview-with-jason-gottlieb-part-2/feed/ 11 Adonis Index Contest,contest winners,Jason Gottlieb In todays podcast we pick up where we left off from last week with Jason Gottlieb. He walks us through how he prepared for and won the open division in the latest Adonis Index competition. - We'll discuss his diet and training routine and more psychol... In todays podcast we pick up where we left off from last week with Jason Gottlieb. He walks us through how he prepared for and won the open division in the latest Adonis Index competition. We'll discuss his diet and training routine and more psychological tricks and mindsets for getting in phenomenal shape. Jason also took top notch pictures that will likely land him on the cover of one of our books as one of our first cover models.                   Jason also put his personal picture chronology/evolution that you can see below here.   Listen in as Jason explains how he made this amazing transformation. If you haven't already listened to part one you can go to this link to listen --> Interview with Jason Gottlieb Part 1 John P.S. There is no formal introduction at the beginning of this audio as I'm less than competent at editing the two pieces of this interview (you'll remember that part one also ends quite abruptly, which is also due to my lack of editing prowess). LISTEN TO PART 2:   Brad Howard, John Barban no 47:24 http://www.adonisindex.com/the-lifestyle-of-being-in-great-shape-interview-with-jason-gottlieb-part-1/ http://www.adonisindex.com/the-lifestyle-of-being-in-great-shape-interview-with-jason-gottlieb-part-1/#comments Wed, 14 Sep 2011 10:00:10 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2114 http://www.adonisindex.com/the-lifestyle-of-being-in-great-shape-interview-with-jason-gottlieb-part-1/feed/ 4 Contest,contest winner,maintaining great shape,the lifestyle of being in great shape There is some down time and recovery time that we all need after dieting and training hard and pushing our bodies to a new level. - Managing the physical and physcological states after recovery might be an even bigger challenge than getting in shape i... There is some down time and recovery time that we all need after dieting and training hard and pushing our bodies to a new level. Managing the physical and physcological states after recovery might be an even bigger challenge than getting in shape in the first place. You can trick yourself into thinking that maintaining your new shape is effortless but it isn't. Staying in shape takes a new kind of effort compared to the effort it takes to get into shape in the first place. This is the elusive state of 'maintenance' that seems to be the hardest part for most people. At some point you need to come to a realization that it has to become a lifetyle that you live and embrace. It's something different from preparing for a contest or dieting for a photoshoot. In many ways it's less strict and less intense, but it's a new skill set and a new mindset that you must learn. Once you've gone through a transformation you will know what it takes to change your body and you'll know that you have it in you to do so. Maintaining that new body is a different step entirely. The physical effort isn't has hard, but the psychological and mental effort will be a new challenge and new learning experience. It's not always going to be an all or nothing 100% blitz the way a contest or photoshoot prep is. Maintenance requires smaller changes but ones that must last for longer. The real game of maintenance is not a physical one but a psychological one. It's learning to see what you really look like on a daily basis. It's learning to adjust your daily routine and your social routine to fit with your body ideal goals as well as your social goals. It's learning to manage your overall stress and pick your spots when to push hard and when to back off. This is the first part of a two part podcast were Jason and I talk about how he managed his condition and learning to maintain his shape from one contest to the next and got into phenomenal shape and won the open contest. We discuss how he is learning to deal with maintaining his new shape and some of psychological tricks he uses to objectively perceive where he is and not let his mind play tricks on him  (and believe me, your mind will play tricks on you) This is something we all have to deal with after getting in shape. Making it a lifestyle and having the body you want on a daily basis while enjoying life is the ultiamte goal. Jason has made some major strides to making this a real lifestyle and he shares them with us in this two part interview. Today is part 1. John Brad Howard, John Barban no 38:08 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-adonis-index-transformation-open-contest-6/ http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-adonis-index-transformation-open-contest-6/#comments Sun, 28 Aug 2011 19:22:25 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2011 http://www.adonisindex.com/at6-adonis-index-transformation-open-contest-6/feed/ 4 http://www.adonisindex.com/learning-to-maintain-a-change-interview-with-erik-ledin-part-1/ http://www.adonisindex.com/learning-to-maintain-a-change-interview-with-erik-ledin-part-1/#comments Mon, 22 Aug 2011 15:08:05 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=2002 http://www.adonisindex.com/learning-to-maintain-a-change-interview-with-erik-ledin-part-1/feed/ 1 http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-contest-winners-announced-2/ http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-contest-winners-announced-2/#comments Tue, 16 Aug 2011 21:24:54 +0000 John Barban http://www.adonisindex.com/?p=1955 http://www.adonisindex.com/adonis-index-contest-winners-announced-2/feed/ 27