Chapter Nine: BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER

You now have the blueprint for building the new you. Follow the advice in this book over the next 12 months and you WILL pack between 8 and 20 solid pounds of muscle mass onto your body. If that doesn’t sound like much to you, go out and grab hold of a pound of lean steak. Now, imagine a dozen or so of those cuts of prime beef slapped all over your physique. Believe me, that will make a dramatic difference to the way that you look!

As you travel along your journey to a more massive physique, you will encounter all sorts of well meaning people who will offer you advice, frown at what you’re doing and try to sell you on the latest sure thing. Your job, however, is to stay focused on the two workout phases that will be your training life over the next 12 months. Too many people get started on a good thing and then switch to something else before giving it time to work. Don’t be one of them.

Where to from here?

Reclaiming your body, grasping hold of your physical destiny and forging the body that you desire is about more than knowledge.

It’s about action.

This book has given you the knowledge. In fact it has provided a template of exactly what you need to do – and avoid – in order to sculpt the physique of your dreams, despite your genetic limitations. The question is …

What are you going to do with that knowledge?

Are you going to be like the 70% of people who purchase exercise and nutrition guides and do …

Nothing?

Are you going to apply the clear direction we’ve provided on nutrition, and proper, scientific training OR are you going to continue spinning your wheels, flitting from one unproductive training regimen to another with nothing to show for it?

Are you going to take the workout challenge, forget the archaic nonsense about genetic limitations, and use the iron to shape and transform your physique OR are you going slip back onto the couch and resume the go nowhere lifestyle which has shaped the physique that you now possess?

Are you going to transform your mental landscape, energising it with the power of goal setting and positive thinking to catapult you forward like an unstoppable cyborg OR are you going to languish in a world of stinking thinking, convincing yourself that you are unable to build muscle, get in shape and make traction in your life?

The choice is yours.

Make the right one.

Chapter Eight: TOP 10 MUSCLE BUILDING SHAKE RECIPES

Getting your protein in the form of a delicious, healthy shake seems like the ideal muscle nutrition solution. It can be, but it can also be an expensive trap for the unwary. The number of protein and muscle gain powder options out there is mind boggling. Unfortunately, many of them are loaded with fillers, artificial sweeteners and low grade quality sources that will clog up your system and make you fat. When it comes to buying protein powder, it is definitely a case of caveat emptor –let the buyer beware!

When it comes to protein supplement drinks, there are actually two different kinds that you need to be aware of. Firstly there re protein drinks that have no added calories except for those found in the protein itself. These will typically give you a total calorie count of about 150 calories. On the other hand, there are weight gainer dinks that are packed with extra calories in addition to what is contained in the protein. These may give you as mush as 2000 calories in a single serving!

The following ten muscle building shake recipes will give you a constant source of variety as you mix up delicious muscle building meals in an instant that will satisfy both your taste buds and your muscle cells.

Berry Smoothie

· 3 oz mixed berries

· 2 tsp maple syrup

· 2 tbs orange juice

· 1 medium banana, frozen

· 2 tbs protein powder

· 12 cup cold mineral water

Remove the stems from the berries and place them in the blender. Add the maple syrup and orange juice and blend thoroughly for 15 seconds. Cut the frozen banana into several pieces. Add the banana, protein powder and water to the blender and blend for 15 seconds.

Pour the mixture into a frosted cocktail glass and serve with a straw.

Berries are jam packed with vitamins and minerals. They fill you with energy, calm the nerves and leave you feeling fit and healthy.

Mango and Coconut Smoothie

· 1 piece mango

· 1 lime

· 2 tsp brown sugar

· ¼ cup cold unsweetened coconut milk

· 2 tbs protein powder

· ½ cup cold unfiltered apple juice

· 1-2 tbs grated coconut

Remove a spiral shaped strip of zest from the lime and set it aside. Squeeze out the lime juice, then add the lime juice, sugar and coconut milk to the blender. Blend vigorously for 15 seconds.

Add the protein powder and apple juice. Blend thoroughly for an additional 10 seconds.

Moisten the rim of a large glass with water, turn the glass upside down and dip the rim into the grated coconut. Place ice cubes in the glass and place the blended smoothie over the top. Thread the reserved mango cubes onto a cocktail skewer and lay them across the rim of the glass. Garnish with lime juice and serve with a zest of lime.

Strawberrry Pineapple Mix

· 3 oz strawberries

· 2 tsp lemon juice

· 1 tsp floral honey

· 2/3 cup cold pineapple juice

· 2 tbs protein powder

Wash the berries and set aside one large berry for garnish. Remove the stems from the remaining berries and cut them into quarters. Put the strawberries, lemon juice, honey and half the pineapple juice in a blender and blend thoroughly for 15 seconds.

Add the protein powder and remaining juice and blend for an additional 10 seconds. Pour the mixture into a tall glass. Cut partway into the reserved strawberry and place it on the rim of the glass for garnish. Serve with a straw.

Kiwi Avocado Mix

· 2 oz ripe avocado

· 1 kiwifruit

· 2 tbs lemon juice

· 1 tsp brown sugar

· ½ cup cold mineral water

· 2 tsp protein powder

· 1 sprig fresh mint

Peel the avocado and chop the flesh, removing the pip. Put the avocado in a blender and drizzle with the lemon juice. Set aside one nice kiwifruit slice for garnish. Peel the remaining kiwifruit, chop it coarsely and add it to the blender along with the sugar and half the mineral water. Blend thoroughly for 15 seconds. Add the protein powder and remaining mineral water and blend thoroughly for an additional 10 seconds.

Place ice cubes in a large glass and pour avocado mixture over the top. Cut partway into the reserved kiwi slice and place on the rim of the glass. Garnish with the mint.

Apple Eldeberry Smoothie

· 3 oz tart apple

· 2 tsp lemon juice

· 2 tsp floral honey

· 2/3 cup cold, unfiltered apple juice

· 2 tbs protein powder

· ¼ cup cold elderberry juice

· 1 sprig fresh mint

Wash the apple and set aside a nice wedge for garnish. Peel the remaining apple, remove the core, and cut into small pieces. Place in the blender and blend for 15 seconds.

Add the protein powder and elderberry juice and blend for a further 10 seconds. Place ice cubes in a large glass and pour the mixture over them. Put the apple wedge on the rim of the glass. Garnish with mint and serve with a straw.

Almond Attacker

· 1 cup almond milk

· 2 scoops protein powder (soy based)

· ½ cup oatmeal

· 2 tablespoons dark chocolate

Put all these ingredients in a blender and blitz.

Almonds are full of healthy fats that help mental alertness. Optimum brain power equals optimum body power. This drink is ideal for people with stomach sensitivity, as there are no dairy products in this smoothie, its ideal for those who suffer from lactose intolerance. Oatmeal has a low GI, making it slow burning, leaving you feel fuller for longer. Dark chocolate is an anti-oxidant, helping kill off any free radicals in your system.

Bananarama

· 1 frozen banana

· 1 cup skim milk

· 1 tablespoon cinnamon

· 1 scoop protein powder

· ½ cup desiccated coconut

Put all these ingredients in a blender and blitz

Bananas are full of potassium, which promotes heart and kidney vitality. Cinnamon helps blood circulation and good blood circulation helps stimulate weight loss.

Chocolate Pear Shake

· 2/3 cups low fat milk

· 4 oz ripe pear

· 1 tsp orange juice

· 1 tsp orange juice concentrate

· 2 tbs finely grated chocolate

· 2 tsp protein powder

Heat the milk until lukewarm. Wash the pear, setting aside a nice piece for garnish. Peel the remaining pear, remove the core, and cut into pieces than place in the blender. Add the orange juice, apple juice and chocolate (leaving a little aside for garnish) and half of the milk. Blend thoroughly for fifteen seconds.

Add the protein powder and remaining milk and blend for a further 10 seconds. Pour the mixture into a tall glass and place the pear slice on the rim. Sprinkle with the remaining chocolate and serve with a straw.

Cherry Buttermilk Smoothie

· 4 oz sweet cherries

· 1 sprig fresh mint

· 1 tbs lemon juice

· 2 tsp apple juice concentrate

· 2 tsp protein powder

· 2/3 cup cold buttermilk

Wash the cherries and set aside a pair joined by the stem for garnish. Remain the pits from the remaining cherries and place the cherries in the blender. Remove the leaves from the mint and set aside one or two nice leaves. Chop the remaining mint leaves and add them to the blender along with the lemon juice, apple juice concentrate, protein powder and half of the buttermilk. Blend thoroughly for fifteen seconds.

Add the remaining buttermilk and blend for a further 10 seconds. Pour into a tall glass, hanging the reserved cherries over the rim and garnishing with the reserved mint leaves.

Mango Carrot Mix

· 1 piece mango

· 1 tbs lime juice

· 2 tsp floral honey

· 2/3 cup cold carrot juice

· 2 tbs protein powder

· 2 pinches ground ginger

· 2 carrot strips

Peel the mango. Cut a wedge and aside a piece for garnishing. Coarsely chop the remaining mango and place in the blender. Add the lime juice, honey and half the carrot juice and blend for fifteen seconds.

Add the remaining carrot juice, ginger and protein powder and blend for a further 10 seconds. Place ice cubes in a large glass and pour the mixture over them. Garnish with the reserved mango wedge. Place the carrot strips on the rim of the glass.

Chapter Seven: 5 SUPER SUPPLEMENTS

The bodybuilding supplement business is a multi-billion dollar industry that, especially over the last decade, has been making a killing. And it’s the young (and not so young), eager gym goers desperate to pack muscle onto their frame who have been dying. Unscrupulous companies plaster their promotional material with images or steroid induced behemoths who claim that you have simply got to take their supplement to have any show of building muscle. After a few years of wasted investment, a lot of frustrated hard gainers simply give up.

Yet it needn’t be that way. It is possible to wade through the masses of useless junk to find the supplementary gems that will actually help you to pack muscle onto your frame. You simply have to now what you’re looking for.

In this chapter we present 5 key muscle building supplements that you should be adding to your nutritional arsenal.

Super Supplement No. 1: Protein Drinks

Protein builds muscle. That’s why it’s essential that protein forms the basis of your nutritional plan, especially before and immediately after your workout. Getting quality, lean protein into your body in the form of whole foods at these times can be tricky. That’s where protein powders come into their own. They’re quick, cost effective and they channel their nutrients directly to the muscle cells that are craving them. Taste is another issue entirely. Many powders out there taste like sawdust. That’s why we set out to find the best tasting protein powder on the market today. After all, if you don’t like it, you won’t keep taking it. And, just like with your training, consistency of protein intake is the key to success. Getting hold of the best tasting protein powder will make it easy for you keep up your intake. Here’s on overview of what you need to look for when considering your protein powder.

Taste

Taste, of course, is a subjective thing. We all like different flavors and types of food. When it come to protein powders, however, we can all identify the winners from the losers. Some products on the market, despite announcing a mouthwatering taste on their packaging, are virtually inedible. It pays, then to either check with family and friends to get recommendations on taste before spending your hard earned money on a product you may not be able to stomach. Alternatively, ask for a taste test before buying.

You’ll want to buy a protein powder that mixes effortlessly in your shaker bottle, without leaving residue in the bottom of the bottle. Clumpiness is a no-no, as is a chalky taste. Rather, your mixed drink needs to be smooth, like velvet. The best tasting protein powders will offer a range of flavors, providing a world of variety beyond vanilla and chocolate.

Quality

You don’t want a protein powder that’s going to leave you with gastro-intestinal upsets, cramping or flatulence. A quality product will leave you feeling strong and pumped rather than weak and deflated. It will have a yield rate of 70% or more (that’s the percentage of the actual product that is protein). The amino acid profile should include both Branch Chain (BCAA) and Essential (EAA) amino acids. A combination of casein, whey and egg protein will provide a great protein mix.

Results

Unlike most other foods, protein powders have a job to do. If it doesn’t help to build muscle mass, lean you out and provide energy, you should stop using it, even if it is one of the best tasting protein powder on the market. Keep a record over the period that you take the powder, carefully noting your strength improvements and muscle mass gains. You should also check with gym buddies before spending your money on what they have found to be the best product to build muscle.

Ease of Use

The best tasting protein powders must also provide ease of use. It should mix equally well in a blender, a shaker bottle and with nothing more than a spoon. Make sure that the powder doesn’t cling to the sides of the mixing cup or give you mouthfuls of clumpy residue. You also don’t want a product that makes you feel bloated, especially if you’re taking your protein during the workout.

Whey or Casein

The two basic types of protein that you’ll find on the ingredient list are whey and casein. Whey protein is considered fast acting because it is able to break down into amino acids and get into the bloodstream within 15 minutes of entering the body. Whey is a dairy based protein, and should be your protein of choice prior to and immediately after your workout.

Casein protein is digested more slowly. As a result this is a good option prior to bed, as it will provide a slow release of protein throughout your system during the night hours when your body is busy at its replenishing and rebuilding work.

Super Supplement No.2: Branch Chain Amino Acids

Branch Chain Amino Acids (BCAA’s) have long been a favorite of bodybuilders and strength athletes, who have used them to increase protein uptake within the muscle cell a well to boost both intra and post workout energy and recovery. Emergency room workers, too, in hospitals know all about BCAA’s. They use them to improve healing and recovery time from injury. As a result of their medical and athletic applications, BCAA’s have been subject to a huge number of scientific studies. These studies have given the public at large confidence in the efficacy of supplementing with BCAA’s. If you’re not using BCAA’s to support your muscle building efforts them you are missing out on a vital ingredient. The current consensus is that BCAA’s act optimally when taken as a drink during the workout.

Branch-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs), include the amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine. All three of these are considered essential amino acids because they are not synthesized by the body and must, therefore be supplied by our diet. BCAA’s are unique in that they can be oxidized in the muscles for fuel. The other essential amino acids are broken down in the liver. BCAA’s, especially leucine, are key stimulators of protein synthesis and protein breakdown. BCAA’s can be used as fuel during exercise. They will also prevent the catabolic effects of working out. Post-workout they can enhance muscle building effects.

Benefits of a BCAA Supplement

· Increases metabolism

· Decreases appetite

· Prevents the breakdown of muscle tissue

· Decreases perceived workout exertion allowing you train harder and longer

Recommendations: Most experts recommend a slightly higher dosage of leucine and smaller dosages of valine and isoleucine. Supplement with 8g of BCAAs daily in a ratio of leucine / valine isoleucine of 3:1:1

Super Supplement No. 3: Glutamine

Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid found in the human body. It is mainly synthesized and stored in muscles. Heavy weight training is associated with drops in blood glutamine levels, increasing susceptibility to infection . As well as providing athletes with immune support, glutamine supplementation promotes protein synthesis and help prevent muscle breakdown. Glutamine can be especially helpful to trainers who are experiencing burn-out or overtraining.

Recommendation: Glutamine is available in tablet, capsule and powder form. It should be taken pre (30 minutes prior to the workout), during and post workout at a dosage of 4g.

Super Supplement No. 4: Creatine

Creatine is the number one, most popular supplement used by people the world over to gain muscle mass and strength. Several hundred studies have conclusively shown that it does, indeed, improve performance and increase muscle mass.

Why Take Creatine

Creatine is not a steroid or a drug. In fact, creatine is naturally found in your body. The human body synthesises one gram of creatine per day. So what does creatine do?

Creatine is necessary to produce the energy for high intensity activity, especially those activities that typically last for less then ten seconds – like a weight training repetition. Supplementing with creatine increases your muscular stores of creatine phosphate. Creatine phosphate is necessary to help resynthesize ATP. ATP is what your body needs to lift heavy weight. Studies have shown that creatine will help you to recover from high intensity activity. If you’re looking to add some size, creatine will help you to add two to five pounds of lean muscle to your frame.

You can naturally find creatine in meat. However, in order to get one gram of creatine you have to eat about one kilogram of meat. To get the recommended daily amount for muscle gain, you would have to consume 5 kg of meat per day! Supplementing with creatine is a whole lot healthier – and cheaper!

To notice results, you’ll want to take 3-5 grams od creatine daily, even on non-workout days. Studies show that it doesn’t matter what time of day you take your creatine. They key is to simply keep taking it.

What to Look For

There are a huge number of options when you start shopping for creatine. Your first point of reference should be to go for a product that has a base of creatine monohydrate. Monohydrate is the original creatine and it is the one that has been the basis of the majority of creatine studies. It has been proven time and again to enhance the ATP system for increased energy, strength and mass gains. There have been a lot of new creatine variants come along, such as kre-alkyline, which is a 98% monohydrate with a buffer. Creatine hydrochloride requires a lesser amount of creatine, but it is also not as effective as straight monohydrate.

When looking for brands of monohydrate, check the label for Creapure, which is the brand name of a German manufacturer of monohydrate. Creapure have a patented process for how they derive their creatine monohydrate. Choosing Creapure will ensure that you are getting the purest form of creatine monohydrate available.

How Much Does it Cost?

When you consider how effective it is, creatine is extremely cheap. You only require 3-5 grams per day. You should expect top pay about four cents per gram. Creatine is available as a powder, a liquid or a capsule. The powder will always be the cheapest, with the liquid being the most expensive, sometimes pushing the per gram cost up to twenty five cents.

Super Supplement No. 5: Nitric Oxide

You work hard in the gym – and out. You discipline yourself to keep your diet clean and you get the rest and recuperation required to allow your body to grow and respond. You’re constantly looking for any advantage that will help you to maximise your workouts and get you to your physique and fitness goals faster. If this sound like you, then Nitric Oxide boosters are a supplement that you definitely need to get familiar with. Let’s consider the benefits – and the dangers!

Nitric Oxide is a gas produced by the body. Nitric Oxide boosters are supplements designed to enhance the body’s ability to produce nitric oxide. They do this by facilitating the breakdown of the amino acid arginine.

The enhanced level of Nitric oxide in the body then works by promoting more efficient blood delivery to the muscle cells. They do this by widening or dilating blood vessels. This not only encourages better muscle pumps during and after your workouts but also helps to more rapidly transport nutrients to the muscle. This allows you to lift heavier for longer and recover faster from your workouts.

Nitric Oxide Benefits

The amino acids arginine, citrulline and beta-alanine are the most common ingredients in nitric oxide boosters. These aminos have proven nitric oxide boosting properties. Whether you’re looking to build strength, add muscle or recover faster from your workouts, nitric oxide booster supplements will get you there faster. Here are 5 reasons why you should consider nitric oxide supplementation:

Quicker Workout Recovery: By enlarging the blood vessels, NO boosters assist smooth muscle to relax and quicken oxygen delivery to the muscle cell. This along, with the enhanced blood flow will greatly boost your recovery ability.

Less Fatigue While Training: When you’re training hard, especially if performing high rep workouts, fatigue can be a major limiting factor. High rep training requires endurance and a limiting factor to endurance performance is oxygen delivery to the muscle tissue. NO boosters have the ability to dramatically improve your oxygen uptake.

More Energy: Improved blood supply to the muscle cell results in a more stable core body temperature. This means that less energy will be required to bring the body’s temperature down during hard training. That means that more energy will be available for the workout.

Burns Body Fat: The NO precursor L-arginine increases glucose uptake in the body. It also boosts the body’s ability to burn body fat as fuel.

A Great Pump: The increased blood flow to the muscle cell will give an awesome pump to your muscles. You’ll look great and feel even better. The pump may not last, but the motivation will.

Nitric Oxide Side Effects

The muscle, energy and pump inducing benefits of NO Boosters are real and demonstrable. But so are a number of concerning side effects. Here are the key side effects of NO supplementation:

Dizziness and Faint Feeling: NO boosters can drop your blood pressure to abnormal levels, leading to an uneasy, spacy feeling along with light-headedness. This is due to their ability to open up the veins to allow for better oxygen uptake.

Vasodilation and Bleeding. Vasodilation refers to the enhanced ability of the blood vessels to open and relax. NO supplementation will boost this ability with the resultant benefits mentioned above. But there is a downside to increased vasodilation. It can result in low blood pressure and excessive bleeding.

Herpes Susceptibility: The main amino acid in NO supplements is L-Arginine. It just so happens that this amino acid also aggravates the herpes virus. It is not uncommon for a person starting on NO booster supplementation to contract the herpes virus.

Diarrhea, Weakness, Nausea: Overdosing on NO Boosters may lead to these unpleasant effects, primarily as a result of too much L-Arginine.

More Frequent Urination: The higher levels of arginine lead to more frequent urination, both during the day and the night.

Lowered Dopamine Levels: Dopamine is responsible for our levels of motivation, our sleep patterns, cognitive ability and memory. Enhanced nitric oxide uptake, however, has been shown to reduce dopamine production by up to 66%.

Gastrointestinal Problems: Quite a common effect of NO supplementation is bloating, abdominal pain and flatulence. This is mainly due to the high levels of arginine present in most NO products.

Reducing the Side-Effects

To minimise the effects mentioned above, keep your Arginine levels below 5000 mg per day. Exercise regularly to naturally enhance dopamine levels. The amino acid tyrosine can also boost dopamine levels. Start with small dosages of NO supplements and then build up to the daily recommended levels. You can also divide your supplementation intake throughout the day. Don’t take nitric oxide if you suffer from hypotension.

Should I or Shouldn’t I?

Whether to take nitric oxide supplements is a choice that must be individually weighed. Many people take them with no apparent adverse reactions while others may notice the majority of the above listed side effects within a day or two. If you feel that the benefits outweigh the potential risks, experiment with NO boosters for a six week period, carefully noting the positive and the negative results that you experience. If they get you bigger, stronger and more pumped without apparent harm, you’ve just found a winner. If not, you’ll know not to go there again. Either way, you will have benefited.

Factor Nine: Eat Every Three Waking Hours

The way that the majority of people in the Western world eat is the mirror opposite to the way that they should eat. Which probably explains why we are drowning in the midst of an obesity epidemic. Consider the traditional 3 meals per day that we’ve all grown up on …

After six to eight hours of fasting, our bodies need the energy that breakfast promises. However most people don’t give their bodies the fuel they need at the start of the day. They either skip breakfast all together, or they shovel heavily processed, sugar-encrusted cereals down their throat. That’s usually chased down with coffee – and more sugar.

As a result of these less than ideal breakfast choices, many people get hungry around 10am. Muffin break anyone?

For many people lunch consists of a mix of processed carbohydrates and fat – with a soft drink chaser.

By the time that dinner rolls around, most people are starving. They load their plates to the hilt and then eat like there’s no tomorrow. When they finally walk away from the dinner table they are so gorged with calories that all they want to do is sleep – which is exactly what they do. And what happens while they sleep? – all those calories are going straight to their belly!

Today you are going to learn a better way - a way that will not only stop your fat accumulation in it’s tracks but that will actually reprogram your body from a fat storage warehouse into a muscle building super furnace.

Eat every 3 waking hours: Forget about the traditional 3 meals per day eating plan. It is bad for you. From now on you will eat more often and on a regular schedule. Each meal will be about the same size. As well as preventing binge eating and grazing, eating regularly will allow a constant flow of energy to your system. The very act of digesting your food will also rev up your metabolism

Making it Work for You

In order to be able to stick with an eating plan it has to be easy to work with. That means it should be easy to prepare, easy to carry your food with you so that you avoid convenience eating and easy to eat. In order to do that you will prepare your meals ahead of time and store them in Tupperware containers. Every meal will combine protein and carbs. Getting into the habit of prepping your food ahead of time will allow you to have the food ready to eat right when you need it. That, in itself, will go a long way toward helping you to stay consistent with your 80% clean eating diet plan.

Putting your food in Tupperware encourages you to eat the food that you’ve prepped, making it easy to eat healthy. This system will prevent you from cheating, putting you on the path to automatic consistency. Also, with this system you only have to cook once every 4 or 5 days. That saves you having to wash pots and pans, rush around after work while you’re starving and stopping in at McDonald’s just to get you through. Prepping your food and putting it in a container will save you between 7 and 14 hours every week.

A key to success with this system is to keep your food choices limited. Stick to just one or two carb and protein sources for the week. If you do this you will be able to prepare your entire food for the week in less than two hours.

Hot Food on the Go

So you’ve prepped your meals and put them in Tupperware containers. How are you going to keep them hot when you’re out and about? Simple! Buy a small food cooler and a standard hot water bottle. In the morning put your containers in the microwave for 10 minutes. At the same time boil some water and pour it into the hot water bottle. Now put the containers in the cooler and cover them with a towel. Place the hot water bottle in there as well and close the lid. Your meals will stay hot for up to 8 hours!

Factor Eight: Boost Your Growth Hormone Levels

The body naturally produces growth hormone in the pituitary gland and, as its name implies, it is responsible for cell growth and regeneration. Increasing muscle mass and bone density are impossible without human growth hormone. However, it is also a major player in maintaining the health of all human tissue, including that of the brain and other vital organs. The secreted growth hormone remains active in the bloodstream for only a few minutes, but this is enough time for the liver to convert it into growth factors, the most critical of which is insulin-like growth factor-1 or IGF-1. IGF-1 boosts a host of anabolic properties. Scientists began to harvest growth hormone from the pituitary glands of cadavers in the 1950’s, but didn’t synthesize the first human growth hormone (HGH) in laboratories until 1981, with it’s use as a performance enhancing drug becoming popular thereafter.

HGH inhibits insulin, which is the fat storing hormone. Sadly, from about age 21 onward, our bodies start producing less and less HGH. That’s why younger people can get away with eating junk food and not pack on the pounds, whereas someone in their 50’s only has to look at a pizza to gain weight. Over eating also mucks up our HGH levels. Balancing your HGH levels will not only help you to lose weight, it will but you in an anabolic state to promote muscle growth and keep you looking young and fantastic.

Let’s find what you can do – legally and safely – to boost your own HGH levels.

(1) Eat a Balanced Diet

Diet is the third major factor in keeping growth hormone levels topped off. It is necessary to eat a balanced diet that provides as many of the following growth hormone boosting agents as possible:


· Vitamin A

· Vitamin B5

· Vitamin B12

· Folic Acid

· Inositol Heaxanicotinate

· Chromium

· Zinc

· Magnesium

· Iodine

· Glutamine

· Glycine

· Carnitine

· Arginine

· Taurine

· Lysine

· Ornithine Alpha-ketoglutarate

(2) Work out with weights

Lifting heavy weights over a regular period of time releases human growth hormone. By reducing our rest between sets this process is enhanced. Try to keep your between set rest periods to under a minute for the best results. Focus, too, on compound movements that work your major muscles groups together, such as squats, deadlift and bent over rowing. Short bouts on high intensity aerobic exercise performed for bouts of about 10 minutes at a time are also effective for HGH release.

(3) Supplement

A multivitamin provides many of the nutrients needed to boost growth hormone. Amino acids such as arginine and glutamine have been shown to boost growth hormone levels in separate studies. Instead of taking these separately, you now have the choice between a multitude of specialty supplements.

Other hormones, such as testosterone, estrogen, progesterone, can also lead to growth hormone increases. The following compounds have all been shown to enhance growth hormone levels;

• Colostrum

• Alpha GPC

• Tribulus terrestris

• Coleus forskohlii

• Panax ginseng

• Siberian ginseng

• Aswagandha root

• Schizandra berry

• Astragalus root

• Dong quai

• Wild yam extract

• Goji berry

• Red date berry

(4) Sleep

Our natural growth hormone production hits its peak at night time. It is, in fact, part of the vital repair and restoration process of sleep. But the daily surge in HGH production doesn’t happen when we’re awake. It’s vital, then, to establish and maintain a regular sleep pattern.

Factor Seven: Boost Your Testosterone

Testosterone is the male growth hormone that is primarily responsible for muscle growth. It also boosts your sex drive. Clearly, then, you need as much of it as you can get. We produce testosterone in our testes. Most men are capable of producing about 7 mg of testosterone each day. Our testosterone levels peak at about the age of 20. It then declines but not at a marked pace.

Here’s what testosterone does to help you get massive and strong:

· Increases lean muscle mass and reduces body fat

· Promotes positive nitrogen balance

· Promotes fat metabolism

· Stimulates red blood cell production, expanding blood volume and improving oxygen delivery throughout the body.

5 Ways to Boost Testosterone Levels

1. Weight train

2. Eliminate cardio

3. Sleep - get a minimum of seven hours

4. Eat more red meat

5. Lean out – the body produces more testosterone when our body fat percentage is under 15 percent.

*This is my favorite resource for raising testosterone to maximum levels, naturally.

Factor Six: Drink Your Water

Your muscles are 70 percent water. In order to make them bigger, you need to keep them hydrated. If you don’t drink enough water, your muscles will shrink. Dehydration causes water to come out of the muscle cell. This puts the body into a catabolic state. That’s why it is critical to keep your muscles flushed with water.

It is especially critical to get water into your body first thing in the morning. You’ve just been in a fasted state during the night. As well as not eating, you haven’t been drinking water. That is why you should consume half a liter of water first thing in the morning. And that means actual real, pure water. If you’re one of those who need a coffee to wake them up, you might have to rethink that habit. Caffeine is a diuretic. It will take even more water from your system.

If you need a bit of flavor to make your water more palatable, place a slice of lemon in your water jar. Set your sights on a gallon (almost 4 liters) of water per day. You should also drink water while you’re working out. Forget about those expensive sports drinks. With your short duration workouts you don’t need them. But you do need water.

Carry a water bottle with you at all times and sip from it regularly. Replace sodas and fruit drinks with flavored water. Set you sights on that gallon a day target and, remember that water is just as important to your muscle building efforts as protein is.