Muscle for Life with Mike Matthews

Should you be doing full-body workouts? What habits will not only help you lose body fat, but keep it off for good? What can we learn from Elon Musk? Some people—my favorite people—listen to most or even all of my podcasts, but my wizbang analytics tell me that while many listeners tune in on a regular basis, they don’t catch every installment of Muscle for Life and thus miss out on insights that could help them do at least a little better inside and outside the gym. That’s why I do “best of” episodes that contain a few of the most practical and compelling ideas, tips, and moments from the more popular episodes I’ve published over the years. This way, you can learn interesting insights that you might have otherwise missed and find new episodes of the show to listen to. So, in this installment of The Best of Muscle for Life, you’ll be hearing hand-picked morsels from three episodes: Menno Henselmans on the Benefits of Full-Body Workouts (Originally published 7/31/2020) 10 Habits of People Who Lose Weight and Keep It Off (Originally published 7/17/2020) Book Club: Elon Musk by Ashlee Vance (Originally published 9/1/2017) And we’ll be starting with number one, Menno Henselmans on the benefits of full-body workouts. Timestamps: 0:00 - Find the Perfect Strength Training Program for You: www.muscleforlife.show/trainingquiz 2:25 - Menno Henselmans on the Benefits of Full-Body Workouts 12:51 - 10 Habits of People Who Lose Weight and Keep It Off 20:09 - Book Club: Elon Musk by Ashlee Vance Mentioned on the Show: Find the Perfect Strength Training Program for You in Just 60 Seconds: http://www.muscleforlife.show/trainingquiz

This podcast is going to get dark. And graphic. This episode is a cautionary tale of just how grim it can get in the throes of disordered eating, anorexia, and mental illness. But it’s also a tale of hope, because my guest Jake tells his story of how he came out the other side of his eating disorder with a newfound respect for his fitness, and a far healthier body and mind to show for it. Before finding my work, Jake developed body dysmorphia and an eating disorder. He was diagnosed with anorexia at the age of 17, hospitalized, and relapsed a number of times. In this interview, Jake tells his story of what it was like navigating his mental illness and eating disorder, losing his college tennis scholarships, dealing with refeeding syndrome, and more. Things could’ve ended very poorly for Jake, but luckily things turned around for him. When he found The Little Black Book of Workout Motivation, he was able to change his relationship with fitness (and even his performance in school). Now he’s been able to find what works for him with his training and diet, and not go down a bad path like before. I wanted to bring Jake on the show because while his exact story isn’t commonplace, perhaps it can be motivating for anyone who’s taken a misstep in their life or fallen on dark times. After all, everyone has their own demons they're battling and can overcome. So if you’re looking for a jolt of inspiration and like motivational stories, definitely listen to this episode. Timestamps: 0:00 - The Little Black Book of Workout Motivation: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/the-little-black-book-of-workout-motivation/ 4:09 - Where were you on your journey before you found my work and where are you now? 55:11 - How did you find your fitness regimen? 1:03:15 - How did you come across The Little Black Book of Workout Motivation? 1:26:24 - What is your perspective on personal responsibility? 1:37:01 - Is there anything else you would like to share? Mentioned on the show: The Little Black Book of Workout Motivation is a bestselling fitness book that helps you overcome the mental blocks that are keeping you unmotivated, unhappy, and unhealthy: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/the-little-black-book-of-workout-motivation/

Do glute activation exercises actually work? Is the 5:2 diet worse for muscle retention than a continuous calorie deficit? Does vitamin D supplementation protect you against injury? Can blood flow restriction training help you gain muscle just as effectively as traditional training? I’m going to give you the TLDR for the latest studies on these topics. This podcast is another installment in my Research Roundup series of episodes, where I give you concise and practical takeaways from studies that I think are interesting and that can help us gain muscle and strength faster, lose fat faster, perform better athletically, feel better, live longer, or get and stay healthier. There is a ton of scientific research that gets published every year, and even if you narrow your focus to fitness research, it would still take several lifetimes to unravel the hairball of studies on nutrition, training, supplementation, and related fields. That's why my team and I put a lot of time into reviewing, dissecting, and describing scientific studies in articles, podcasts, and books. In today's episode, I'm tackling studies on whether glute “activation” exercises boost glute growth, how effective the 5:2 diet is for preserving muscle while you diet, whether vitamin D can actually help prevent injury, and how well blood flow restriction training works for building muscle. Press play if you want to learn the answers to those questions. Oh and if you like this type of episode, let me know. Send me an email (mike@muscleforlife.com) or direct message me on Instagram (@muscleforlifefitness). And if you don’t like it, let me know that too or how you think it could be better. Timestamps 0:00 - Shop Legion Supplements Here: https://buylegion.com/ and use coupon code MUSCLE to save 20% or get double reward points! 4:20 - Do glute activation exercises boost glutei activation when you squat? 8:59 - How effective is the 5:2 diet? 14:44 - What are the benefits of Vitamin D? 19:06 - How can blood flow restriction training help you gain muscle? Mentioned on the Show: Shop Legion Supplements Here: https://buylegion.com/ and use coupon code MUSCLE to save 20% or get double reward points!

Do cold showers do anything? How long does it take to reach your genetic muscle potential? Should you count the calories from vegetables? How many sets should you do for your arms? All that and more in this Q&A podcast. This podcast is a Q&A, but it’s a bit different from the kind you’ll typically find here on Muscle For Life. In my usual Q&A episodes, I take a question from email or Instagram and then fully answer it in an episode of the podcast every week. However, over on Instagram, I’ve started doing weekly Q&As in the stories, and it occurred to me that many podcast listeners might enjoy hearing these questions and my short answers. So, instead of talking about one thing in an episode, I’m going to cover a variety of questions. And keep in mind some of these questions are just for fun. :) So if you want to ask me questions in my Instagram stories, follow me on Instagram (@muscleforlifefitness), and if I answer your question there, it might just make it onto an episode of the podcast! If you like this type of episode, let me know. Send me an email (mike@muscleforlife.com) or direct message me on Instagram. And if you don’t like it, let me know that too or how you think it could be better. Timestamps 0:00 - Find the Perfect Strength Training Program for You: www.muscleforlife.show/trainingquiz 2:31 - What is the best temperature to shower in? 4:27 - What are your thoughts on trendy electrolyte drinks? 9:06 - Is decline bench press a waste of time? 9:51 - What are the benefits of creatine for women? 11:33 - Do vegetarians need collagen? 12:12 - What is the proper rep tempo? 14:47 - What is the best magnesium supplement? 15:42 - Should I count my cruciferous vegetables? 16:40 - How many direct biceps/tricep exercises are necessary in a PPL program? 18:37 - Do you use collars on leg press? 18:49 - How long would it take for someone to reach their genetic muscle potential? Mentioned on the Show: Find the Perfect Strength Training Program for You in Just 60 Seconds: http://www.muscleforlife.show/trainingquiz

What’s the best way to build a beach-ready, bikini body? What are the most important muscle groups to train, and how can you organize your workout split to ensure you’ll reach your goal as quickly as possible? Holly Baxter explains how to achieve a developed, lean physique in this podcast. Most women aren’t planning to ever step on stage as part of a bikini or physique competition. However, some version of that general look is a common goal of many women who have started training and lifting weights in the gym. If you’ve ever wondered how to build a bikini-ready body, you’re going to enjoy this podcast. In it, Holly Baxter explains what it takes to build a bikini body, including training tips, exercise selection, and more. In case you’re not familiar with Holly, she’s an educator, coach, nutritionist, and Accredited Practicing Dietitian (ADP) with a Masters in Dietetics. Her academic career has also translated into competitive success. She’s a two time world level champion fitness model in the Natural Universe and Natural Olympia competitions, and has pro status with the WBFF. She’s won various naturally bodybuilding competitions in the IFBB, OCB, and more. She’s also a co-founder of the Carbon Diet Coach as well as Team Biolayne with Layne Norton. In our chat, Holly and I talk about . . . The best exercises for glute activation and development The importance of warmups and how to do them effectively Whether chest work is important for a beach-body look (and how much to do) How she builds a training program (including how she counts weekly muscle group volume) Shoulder development tips The “best” workout splits, rep ranges, and training frequency And more . . . So if you want to learn how to build a “Hollywood” babe body, and what it takes to develop the muscle groups most women care more about, listen to this podcast! Timestamps: 0:00 - Try Whey+ risk-free today! Go to buylegion.com/whey and use coupon code MUSCLE to save 20% or get double reward points! 6:07 - What kind of training do women need in preparation for a bikini competition? 10:05 - What are your thoughts on the effects of squats? 14:38 - What is your warm up routine? 16:48 - Did you have a simpler routine before? 19:58 - How do you like to structure your warmup sets? 22:38 - What are your thoughts on intensity discipline? 38:44 - How important is chest work for a bikini competition? 39:20 - What are some of your favorite exercises to do? 40:37 - What volume do you recommend for lower body exercises? 45:50 - Do you program your workouts to be both indirect and direct? 49:50 - What are some exercises that improve shoulder development? 59:23 -  Is there anything else you would like to share? 1:01:56 - What do you recommend for workout splits? 1:06:31 - Where can we find you? Mentioned on the show: Try Whey+ risk-free today! Go to buylegion.com/whey and use coupon code MUSCLE to save 20% or get double reward points! Holly’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollytbaxter

Many people say the best diet and exercise regimens are the ones you can stick to. This is true insofar as compliance is concerned, but it misses a crucial caveat: efficacy. No matter how well you stick to a diet or exercise routine that doesn’t work, you’re nowhere. The goldilocks zone, then, is the overlap between what you can stick with and what works. And while that territory is larger than you might think, there are boundaries. Some people try to snub such “tough fitness truths” for more comforting myths and fictions, but the sooner you can find, accept, and adapt to them, the sooner you can get on the glide path to your best body ever. Listen to this podcast for ten of these fitness truths! Timestamps: 0:00 - Please leave a review of the show wherever you listen to podcasts and make sure to subscribe! 3:00 -  Legion VIP One-on-One Coaching: https://muscleforlife.show/vip Mentioned on the Show: Legion VIP One-on-One Coaching: https://muscleforlife.show/vip

Is eating 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day more than necessary? Don’t some studies say eating any more than 0.8 grams per pound is pointless? Why do I often recommend eating 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day? I’ve written and recorded a lot of evidence-based content over the years on just about everything you can imagine related to building muscle, losing fat, and getting healthy. I’ve also worked with thousands of men and women of all ages and circumstances and helped them get into the best shape of their lives. That doesn’t mean you should blindly swallow everything I say, though, because let’s face it—nobody is always right about everything. And especially in fields like diet and exercise, which are constantly evolving thanks to the efforts of honest and hardworking researchers and thought leaders. This is why I’m always happy to hear from people who disagree with me, especially when they have good arguments and evidence to back up their assertions. Sometimes I can’t get on board with their positions, but sometimes I end up learning something, and either way, I always appreciate the discussion. That gave me the idea for this series of podcast episodes: publicly addressing things people disagree with me on and sharing my perspective. Think of it like a spicier version of a Q&A. So, here’s what I’m doing: Every couple of weeks, I’m asking my Instagram followers what they disagree with me on, and then picking the more common or interesting contentions to address here on the podcast. And in this episode, I’ll be tackling the following . . . “1 g of protein per pound of bodyweight per day is more than necessary.” Timestamps: 0:00 - Find the Perfect Strength Training Program for You: www.muscleforlife.show/trainingquiz 2:16 - What is protein and why does it matter? 3:39 - How much protein is needed to effectively gain muscle? 5:27 - Why should we have that amount of protein and why does that amount change? 7:03 - Where did you come up with those numbers? 11:37 - How much protein should we consume for health and longevity? Mentioned on the Show: Find the Perfect Strength Training Program for You in Just 60 Seconds: www.muscleforlife.show/trainingquiz

Have you ever tried to make a big change in your life, and instead of easing into it and slowly building up the necessary behaviors and habits, you dove headfirst towards the goal and went all-out? This is common and it often leads to disaster. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with having big goals, wanting to do things “right,” or giving something your best effort. However, trying to outperform and constantly chasing end goals is a recipe for burnout and never really feeling fulfilled. So, how do we find balance? Well, in this interview, I’m chatting with Brad Stulberg about a different approach—one he calls “groundedness” and which he has written about in his newest book, The Practice of Groundedness. Brad explains this concept in-depth in the interview, but “groundedness” is a way to harness your motivation and energy and help you become more process-oriented instead of end-goal driven, which can lead to improved well-being and outcomes. In case you’re not familiar with Brad, he’s a researcher, writer, and coach on well-being and what it takes to succeed. As an author, he’s been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, New Yorker, Sports Illustrated, and more. He helps executives, entrepreneurs, and athletes work on their mental game, improve their overall well-being, and achieve excellence. He’s also the coauthor of Peak Performance, a book I did a Book Club episode on in 2017. In our chat, Brad and I talk about . . . How to create an "internal dashboard" so you can stop chasing end results and outcomes How to discover and define your core values so you can enjoy the process more The role your environment plays in helping or hurting your groundedness practice Role-modeling behavior to loved ones rather than trying to convince others to change a behavior with you The power of acceptance and why it matters for lasting change Why patience actually gets you to your goals faster How to foster community and why it’s important for success And more . . . So if you want to build confidence, find more balance in your life, be happier, avoid burnout, and learn how to realize excellence and more sustainable success, you’re going to love this podcast! Timestamps: 0:00 - New Pulse flavor Strawberry Margarita is out now! Go to buylegion.com/pulse and use coupon code MUSCLE to save 20% or get double reward points! 5:39 - What is “groundedness”? 6:31 - Is the idea to tie it into some sense of purpose? 12:21 - What are your thoughts on finding core values? How did you figure out those things for yourself? 15:10 - What are some of the common barriers to groundedness? 19:41  - Do you have any advice on dealing with relationships that don’t support your core values? 23:38 - Why do you believe in no cell phones in the bedroom? 28:16 - How can people be more accepting of their own faults and problems? 44:17 - What does a positive community look like and how have you created that in your life? 55:07 - Where can people find you and your work? Mentioned on the show: New Pulse flavor Strawberry Margarita is out now! Try Pulse risk-free today! Go to buylegion.com/pulse and use coupon code MUSCLE to save 20% or get double reward points! The Practice of Groundedness: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08PXVXGSM/?tag=mflweb-20 Brad’s website: www.bradstulberg.com Brad’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/BStulberg

Does caffeine boost your performance even if you’re a habitual coffee drinker? How does strength training influence fat burning? Can eating vegetables boost your recovery? How does the carnivore diet affect health markers? Will having a spotter boost your bench press? This is what the latest research says about these questions. This podcast is part of a new series I’m going to call Research Roundups. What is it going to be? Well, there is a ton of scientific research that gets published every year, and even if you narrow your focus to fitness research, it would still take several lifetimes to unravel the hairball of studies on nutrition, training, supplementation, and related fields. That's why my team and I put a lot of time into reviewing, dissecting, and describing scientific studies in articles, podcasts, and books. And while the principles of proper eating and exercising are relatively simple and fairly immutable at this point, new research can help us understand why the fundamentals work. They can help us understand how to better implement them, and how to get better results with them. And occasionally every so often there are new and better methods of eating, exercising, supplementing, and living to achieve our health and fitness goals faster. And so in this series of episodes, you’re going to learn about new research on various things related to building muscle, losing fat, getting healthy, improving wellbeing, and so on. In today's episode, I'm going to be talking about how lifting weights affects gene expression, whether caffeine boosts performance if you’re a regular coffee drinker, the health effects of the carnivore diet, and more. So listen if you want to learn the answers to those questions and more. Oh and if you like this type of episode, let me know. Send me an email (mike@muscleforlife.com) or direct message me on Instagram (@muscleforlifefitness). And if you don’t like it, let me know that too or how you think it could be better. Timestamps 0:00 - My award-winning fitness books for men and women: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/ 3:56 - How does strength training burn fat and help you lose weight? 6:42 - Can eating cruciferous vegetables improve your muscle recovery? 9:13 - How does caffeine affect physical performance if you regularly drink coffee? 14:23 - Is the carnivore diet good for you? 18:05 - How can spotting improve bench press performance? Mentioned on the Show: My award-winning fitness books for men and women: https://legionathletics.com/products/books/

How do you overcome a strength plateau? Does high-intensity cardio affect your hormones? Chinups versus pullups? What has been my greatest decision? All that and more in this podcast. This podcast is a Q&A, but it’s a bit different from the kind you’ll typically find here on Muscle For Life. In my usual Q&A episodes, I take a question from email or Instagram and then fully answer it in an episode of the podcast every week. However, over on Instagram, I’ve started doing weekly Q&As in the stories, and it occurred to me that many podcast listeners might enjoy hearing these questions and my short answers. So, instead of talking about one thing in an episode, I’m going to cover a variety of questions. And keep in mind some of these questions are just for fun. :) So if you want to ask me questions in my Instagram stories, follow me on Instagram (@muscleforlifefitness), and if I answer your question there, it might just make it onto an episode of the podcast! If you like this type of episode, let me know. Send me an email (mike@muscleforlife.com) or direct message me on Instagram. And if you don’t like it, let me know that too or how you think it could be better. Timestamps 0:00 - My free quiz to answer all your diet questions: www.muscleforlife.show/dietquiz 2:27 - What do you do when your strength plateaus? 8:00 - Is Nitrosigine beneficial? 8:54 - Does HIIT training affect hormone levels? 10:02 - How can I increase sales as a newbie entrepreneur? 13:25 - Why is it difficult to eat for a lean bulk? 15:08 - What is the proper way to get back into training? 16:41 - When do we reduce calories when weight loss has stalled? 18:00 - Does eating very little fat have a negative impact on heath? 19:26 - Are there any benefits to taking Pulse on your off days? 20:06 - What is the best decision you’ve made in your life? 24:32 - Is wholemeal toast a nutritious carb? 25:04  - Are chin ups better than pull ups? Mentioned on the Show: Take this free quiz to get science-based answers to all of your diet questions: www.muscleforlife.show/dietquiz