If you want to get healthier, stronger, and more resilient, one of the best things you can do is build muscle. Regular strength training can contribute to your longevity, improve your brain health, optimize your metabolism, and so much more. But unfortunately, there are a lot of myths and misconceptions out there about what it takes to put on muscle.

My friend Jay Ferrugia is an elite fitness and mindset coach. His client base spans from professional athletes to everyday folks. Jay is so successful because he makes training simple and realistic. He’s back on The Model Health Show to share the five biggest mistakes people make when they’re trying to build muscle.

You’ll learn about selecting the right exercises, the right weights, and other habits and behaviors that can help you get better results. We’re diving into topics like progressive overload, recovery, and nutrition. Jay is a seasoned expert in the realm of fitness, and I know his insights are going to empower you to build muscle as effectively as possible. Enjoy!

In this episode you’ll discover:

• The connection between resistance training and cognitive function.
• Why building muscle requires simplicity.
• How many reps you should do of an exercise, depending on your skill level.
• Why form is critical for building muscle.
• What mechanical tension is.
• Why soreness is a poor indicator of a good workout.
• How to know if you’re lifting heavy enough.
• The importance of selecting the right exercises for you.
• Why learning the fundamentals of movement can help you build strength.
• Simple ways to avoid injuries.
• The best way to create results in the gym.
• Two definitions of intensity.
• What the effective reps theory is.
• The truth about progressive overload.
• Why your mindset plays a powerful role in your fitness outcomes.
• Nutritional considerations for building muscle.
• Why you have a duty to be your best self.
• The number one thing you can do outside the gym to maximize your results.

Items mentioned in this episode include:

• DrinkLMNT.com/model -- Get a FREE sample pack with any order!
• Onnit.com/model -- Save an exclusive 10% on performance supplements & tools!
• Connect with Jay Ferruggia Website / Podcast / Instagram

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This episode is brought to you by LMNT. we're looking at what is the key to maintaining longevity, functional longevity with our body, with our muscles and also with our brain and cognitive performance as well? Well, the latest data is confirming that it is through resistance training that we're seeing a gigantic leap in functional longevity, in not just our lifespan, but our health span. And so it's not just muscle strength. And this is the key. The latest data is affirming it's also building and maintaining muscle mass. Now, this does not mean that we need to walk around with Hawking amounts of muscle on our frame. If you're into that, that's cool. But for all of us, for every walk of life, for every demographic, for every sex, we need to build and maintain muscle mass. It is one of the greatest gifts that we have as human beings, to choose to put more muscle on our frame, but to create and build muscle that feels good on us, that also, dare I say, looks good on us as well, but most importantly allows us to live a long healthy life. And so here's the key and what this episode is all about, is practical, real world science on building and maintaining your muscle. And we're gonna look at this through the lens of the biggest mistakes that people make when working to build muscle. In fact, we're gonna go through the five biggest mistakes that people make when working to build and maintain their muscle, and we're gonna learn from somebody who is, I'm talking about, elite when it comes to understanding how to build muscle. And I think that this is going to be one of those episodes that impacts your life for many, many years to come. Now, it's really important to understand that it isn't just about the stressors or the environmental inputs. The strength training that enables us to build muscle, there are key elements that are driving our muscle contractions, and also the recovery and healing of our muscles as well to build back stronger. And so protein is obviously of critical importance because these are truly the building blocks, these amino acids are the building blocks that are making up these tissues. But also, there are key minerals that are critical in order for our muscles to function in the first place, the most important minerals being electrolytes. These are minerals that carry an electric charge that enable muscle contraction in the first place. And so if we're deficient in these things, we simply cannot fire or recruit muscles in the same way. And also, this can lead to unnecessary fatigue, this can lead to muscle cramping and also lack or slowing, degrading in the ability to have our muscles to be repaired. And so electrolytes are truly important. And actually, it was at my special guest house, I was just over there doing a show years ago, and he gave me these electrolytes, and honestly, I took them and then they just sat in my cabinet for like three months. And then my wife went to do yoga, she went to a hot yoga class and she came back and she was just kind of feeling depleted and just kind of low energy. And I was like, "You probably need some electrolytes, so let me grab you some." I'm like, "I've got some in here," and I grabbed them, added them to water, gave them to her, and then I went to my office. I came back like 20 minutes later and she's bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, and working. I'm just like, "What the... What happened to you?" And I realized like, okay, I gave her some electrolytes, but this kind of change in her energy was very notable and very strange, and I was like, "This is interesting." And so I utilized them the next day. And usually, sometimes if I got a long day and if I'm recording a lot and doing multiple shows and doing interviews and media and all this stuff, around 4 or 5 o'clock, I might not really wanna be Chatty Cathy at that point. I might just wanna be a little bit more reserved. But it was like 4 or 5 o'clock and I was walking around in my backyard, and I'm just thinking about, "I haven't called such and such back yet," or like I've got... "I need to leave this voice text for such and such. I said I'd get back to him," whatever. I was just like thinking up people for me to get in contact with, which is not my personality, especially at the end of the day. And I was just like, "What is going on?" Maybe it's just I'm having a great day, but I had those electrolytes that day as well. It's just like I'm putting two and two together, I'm like, this might be something special here. And so I start to look into the science and contacting the creator as well, and one of the creators is actually somebody who's, for me, been such an inspiration and mentor. And I was shocked that I hadn't utilized or looked into these electrolytes sooner because of my level of respect for him. And I'm talking about New York Times best-selling author, Robb Wolf who's become a really good friend. And so having the science and having this connection and understanding the integrity, that's why I decided to really get on board with the incredible electrolytes from LMNT. Go to drinklmnt.com/model. And not only are you going to get the best electrolyte formulation based on hundreds of thousands of data points from different people, we're talking about high-level athletes to everyday folks on the optimal ratio and the most important electrolytes for performance, cognitive performance and physical activity as well, and no unnecessary sugars, no artificial colors, none of the nefarious stuff that we typically find in these "electrolyte drinks" that have become popularized in recent history, in particular through the lens of sport. Again, go to drinklmnt.com/model, get yourself hooked up with their incredible electrolytes. And when you go to that link, you're going to get a free gift, a free sample pack of electrolytes with multiple flavors with every purchase. Alright? So they're giving you a free gift right now, when you go to drinklmnt.com/model. Get hooked up with the best electrolytes in the world.

This episode is brought to you by Onnit. No list, no gifts. Here are just a few benefits of building muscles seen in peer-reviewed studies. Building some muscle mass can significantly improve your insulin sensitivity, improve your overall hormone health, improve your cognitive performance, improve your immune system, protect you against injuries and speed recovery, and defend your body against age-related degradation. This is just a small slice of what a little bit more muscle can do. Now the barrier of entry to building more healthy muscle and reaching a state of physical fitness is easier than ever. Having a few key pieces of equipment at your house can absolutely change the game for you. Kettlebells, steel clubs, maces, battle ropes, all of these phenomenal, multifaceted pieces of equipment are readily available to ship directly to your door. Go to onnit.com/model, and you're going to receive 10% off some of the most premier training equipment in the world. Simple piece of equipment that you can do dozens, if not hundreds of different exercises with. Plus, they've got incredible programs as well to teach you different techniques for unconventional training to truly create more functionality in your health and fitness. On top of all that, Onnit is also one of the world leaders in human performance nutrition. They've got the most remarkable pre-workout supplements and post-workout protein that you're going to find, all sourced from Earth-grown ingredients, nothing synthetic. They also have put their own products into real world clinical trials to affirm their efficacy. Again, go to onnit.com/model. That's onnit.com/model for 10% off everything they carry.