If you’re not familiar with Visual Impact Muscle Building, you could start by reading my quick review.  The brief summary is that it is a 6-7 month program dividend into 3 phases plus a bonus phase that will help you gain muscle while limiting fat gain in order to achieve a lean, defined, and muscular look.  The focus is generally on upper body training so that you strategically gain muscle in the right places.

Background

I think it’s important to know where I started from and what my goals and expectations of Visual Impact Muscle Building were.  This way, you can assess if you’re at a similar place and may experience similar, or better, results.  Feel free to skip to the next section if this doesn’t interest you.

I initially performed Visual Impact Muscle Building back when it was in its infancy.  I actually had to reduce the amount of time for each phase because I only had a few months to get in shape for summer.  It worked well but I didn’t spend nearly long enough in Phases 1 and 2 because I was focused on getting really lean using the principles of Phase 3.  I continued to incorporate the principles I learned across my own structured programs, cumulating with a cutting approach that helped me get to my lowest level of body fat last October (see my Six Pack Abs Workout Routine).

While I was thrilled with my abs, I looked too thin overall, especially my face and neck.  I decided this was an optimal time to start Visual Impact Muscle Building again.  Initially I hoped to increase from 134lbs to 145lbs while limiting fat gain and then trying to burn some fat and end up at 140lbs.  Historically I look too thin under 140lbs and seem to gain too much fat above 145lbs.  Ultimately, I wanted to lower my overall body fat percentage and add 5lbs of upper body muscle.  As I’ll describe later, this goal actually changed along the way.

Visual Impact Muscle Building Results – Graph

Jumping into the results, you can see from the graph above that I gained a lot of weight (blue line) and a good amount of skeletal muscle (green line) while limiting fat gain (red line) during Phase 1.  Phase 2 was an eating disaster due to holidays, birthdays, vacations, etc. so weight and fat increased while skeletal muscle remained constant.  The first two weeks of Phase 3 included a week off and a week of being sick so weight increased pretty quickly during that time.  However, I quickly shed that weight (mostly fat) and preserved skeletal muscle.

Visual Impact Muscle Building Results – Measurements

In the chart above, I show how my weight and measurements changed throughout the program.  The short story is that I gained almost 10lbs, with only 1.4lbs of fat gain.  I added 1” to my shoulders and chest, 3/4” to my arms but unfortunately added 1/2” to my waist as well.  While these results obviously didn’t fully meet my goals, I was very satisfied with my overall appearance.

Visual Impact Muscle Building Review

For a more complete review, I thought I’d go through each phase in more detail.  I fully documented Phase 1 and Phase 2 in other posts, so I’d encourage you to read those if you’re interested.

Phase 1: As previously mentioned, I started out pretty lean (8-9% body fat) going into Phase 1.  Technically, my starting point came after a week off from training so I officially began at 10% body fat according to my tester.  This allowed me to decrease my body fat back down to single digits during the first few weeks of Phase 1 while gaining muscle before adding back some fat.  I think the biggest takeaway is that even though you get to eat excess calories, try not to go overboard.  The cleaner you eat, the more likely you’ll gain muscle instead of fat.  A go-slow approach works well here.

Phase 2: I set myself up nicely to take advantage of Phase 2 but the execution completely failed.  I simply couldn’t handle the plethora of holiday parties, birthday parties, a couple weeks of vacation, and a variety of other derailing events.  As far as the workout went, I was actually pleased with the results.  As anticipated, I got a lot stronger during this phase and enjoyed it a lot more than training to failure.  I really just needed to focus a lot more on my diet.  The interesting side effect of this phase is that my goals started to change.  While I had lost some ab definition, my overall appearance was much more favorable, primarily due to mass gains in my upper body combined with a “fuller” face and neck.  Frankly, I had been focused on getting great abs for so long that I wasn’t concerned with the rest of my appearance.  My wife and others actually prefer me with a little extra weight, especially in clothes.

Phase 3: This phase was all about trying to correct some of the mistakes from Phase 2.  The challenge was that I didn’t want to cut calories too much given the change in goals.  Unfortunately I got off to a rough start.  I took my regular week off from training and then got sick for another few days.  Overall, I went about 10 days without exercising which resulted in some weight gain.  Fortunately not too much of it was fat.  For the next 3 weeks, I lost a little fat while preserving muscle and getting stronger than I’ve ever been.  At that point I actually decided to stop the program.  I was starting to see my face and neck thin out again and figured it was best to go into a maintenance type routine.  Would I have liked to have lost more body fat?  Of course, but I was reasonably happy with my overall appearance.  I corrected most the damage I did during Phase 2 and decided that I would shift back and focus more on gaining muscle again rather than reducing fat.  I also skipped the bonus phase since I didn’t feel like I got my body fat low enough to shrink wrap my muscles.

Visual Impact Muscle Building Results – Photos

I hate before and after photos.  I’m camera shy and don’t like taking pictures on a regular basis.  Every time I try to take photos, I look way too serious or can’t stop laughing.  So I decided to show some representative pictures with my goofy face chopped off.  Note that I said representative…these are not technically before and after pics.  The before picture was taken a while back but approximates the size of my upper body when I started.  In reality I probably started with 2% less body fat so my waist would have been smaller than in the photo.  The after picture was taken a week ago and I’ve put on 1-2% body fat since stopping Visual Impact Muscle Building due to eating about 4,000 calories of Easter candy and 5,000 calories of ice cream.  Still, I think you can visually see the difference in muscle size.  Maybe I’m seeing what I want to see though…decide for yourself.  I definitely have that stubborn belly fat to work on again but that’s a problem for another day.  The candy and ice cream were worth it after going 40 days and nights without them during lent.

Final Thoughts on Visual Impact Muscle Building

I think that’s about as much detail as I can go into regarding my Visual Impact Muscle Building results.  My final advice is to start by getting relatively lean and then go through the phases as outlined.  Feel free to substitute exercises and make the routine your own.  Don’t screw up your diet like me, and I think you’ll see a phenomenal transformation.  I’m sure I’ve glossed over or forgot a few points, but please ask questions and I’ll do my best to offer any tips based on my experience.  Good luck to those who choose to undertake Visual Impact Muscle Building.

1. One size doesn’t fit all

Not every workout routine or diet program works for everyone.  Just because I’ve had success with a variety of strategies doesn’t mean those same strategies will work for you.  The strategies or programs I recommend tend to work with others but there’s no absolute certainty that they work for everyone.  For example, I like intermittent fasting to lose weight but my wife just can’t fathom doing it.

2. Consistency and effort trumps selection of a routine

I’m convinced that consistently performing the worst routine and putting in a strong effort is more effective than inconsistently performing the best routine with a lackluster effort.  This is why it’s critical for you to choose a workout or diet that you either enjoy or that doesn’t adversely impact your life.

3. Accountability

The best way to put in a consistent effort is to hold yourself accountable.  This is a big challenge.  For me, writing a fitness blog motivates me to stay in shape.  Otherwise I might give in to temptation and binge on ice cream, cookies, and other sweets on a more regular basis.  While I do have my cheat days, I always make sure to stay within striking distance of being in good shape.  My wife on the other hand likes the Weight Watchers approach, not that she needs it.  It’s foolish to me but recording what she eats and staying within her allotted points works for her.  Plus she feels accountable because she’s forced to weigh in once per week.

4. I have too many goals but they’re somewhat congruent

I think a lot of people try to train for too many goals at once.  I’m certainly guilty.  I want to be healthy, get stronger, develop endurance, and maintain a lean, defined look.  On the surface it seems impossible to train for all of these at once.  However, if I do strength training, I’ll gradually get healthier and achieve a lean look.  If I do HIIT or circuit training, I’ll not only improve endurance but also get a lean, healthy look.  Even trying to gain muscle and lose fat can be congruent in a way.  Performing strength training helps you gain muscle and eating the right diet or performing cardio helps burn fat.  Obviously if you’re looking for large gains in size or aiming for a lot of fat loss, it’s probably more effective to focus on one, but it’s not necessarily impossible to do both slowly over the long term.

5. Getting in elite shape is really hard

I’ll admit that I’m in pretty good shape but trying to take things to the next level has proven challenging.  A lot of this stems from the fact that I have an office job, family, and don’t get as much sleep as I’d like…having a 2 ½ year old who has a tendency to wake up 1-2 times per night gets exhausting.  The other challenge is that I’m not as motivated as I used to be.  I can do what I’m doing to stay in shape but I’d really like to kick up my focus and effort for 2-3 months to get in elite shape.  It’s just not a priority for me at this stage in my life.  Maybe if I was single and 15 years younger, I’d think differently.

6. Appearance is subjective

I’m a fan of getting lean but there can be a point where you are too lean.  One of my past problems has been that I have to lose a lot of weight to get the abs I want, such as when I performed my six pack abs workout routine.  The problem is that I end up looking too small in clothes, especially my face and neck.  My wife actually prefers my current look with a little extra fat.  Even though I’m 10lbs heavier and have some stubborn fat in my lower abs after performing Visual Impact Muscle Building, she likes my overall appearance better, especially in clothes.  This ties back to my prior point about being in elite shape.  These days I’m not exactly prancing around with my shirt off to show off my abs.  In other words, no one really has the chance to see how defined I am.  In fact, most people think I look better with a little extra fat because they only see me in clothes.

7. Overcomplicating things just leads to confusion

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read a workout or diet plan and been utterly confused by its complexity.  This involves everything from performing exercises I’ve never heard of to cycling foods based on glycemic load.  If you feel overwhelmed, then just try to boil things down to the basics.  Either that or spend a lot of time and effort educating yourself.

8. Cardio is useful…for some

I could probably write an entire post on this subject.  A good number of people in the fitness industry would say that as long as you’re performing strength training, then you just need a good diet to lose weight.  In other words, the calories burned from cardio aren’t enough to justify doing it.  Additionally, the cardiovascular benefits of weight training are enough to keep you healthy.  I’d agree with this to some extent.

However, I think cardio can be invaluable in a weight loss routine.  First, let’s tackle the diet vs. cardio argument.  Most men probably don’t need cardio to lose weight because they can more easily reduce their diets.  However, take the example of a woman who wants to weigh 130lbs; she would probably need to eat around 1,300 calories per day to get there.  That’s extremely low.  Wouldn’t it be a little more lifestyle friendly to eat 1,600-1,800 calories and burn the other 300-500 with cardio?  Additionally, exercise has metabolic benefits while a calorie restrictive diet over the long term can lead to a slowing metabolism.  In Visual Impact Cardio, Rusty Moore also discusses how cardio is also effective for eliminating stubborn fat where a diet on its own may fall short.

As for cardiovascular benefits, I don’t think anything can fully replace a good HIIT workout.  It gets my heart racing a lot faster than strength training.  Plus, when I’ve eliminated cardio from my routine in the past, I always feel more lethargic and find myself getting winded when walking up steps.  Endurance is an important part of my routine and cardio can assist in achieving that goal.  Still, everyone has to decide for themselves whether cardio is worth the time and effort.

9. Most supplements are useless

I’m not going to spend much time on this.  Just be careful about what you put in your body and realize that companies spend a huge amount on advertising to convince you that their product is a miracle drug.  For more information, you can read my post on some of the supplements I’ve used: Best Supplements for Weight Loss and Muscle Gain.

10. Be happy

Finally, just get to a point where you’re happy with the way you look, healthy, and maybe even enjoy exercising or eating well.  You can only force yourself to do things for so long before your body rebels.  If you can convince yourself that you actually enjoy fitness, that will go a long toward achieving your goals.

There you have ten lessons learned from my fitness blog over the past two years.  I’m sure there will be many more lessons in the future.  Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this valuable education!

Quick Visual Impact Cardio Review

I’ve posted a quick Visual Impact Cardio Review where you can read about some pros and cons.  So far, a number of people seem to be excited about the content.  In fact, one of my fellow fitness bloggers got to test the routine early and managed to lose 19lbs and 6% body fat in 8 weeks.  When I complete the routine, I will also post my results.

Visual Impact Cardio Review

In this review, I’d like to walk through the table of contents in a little more detail so you get a sense of how much time, effort and research went into constructing the workout routines.

By way of background, Rusty Moore is a fitness blogger who is an expert in getting the lean, Hollywood look.  I’d highly recommend reading my interview with Rusty Moore for more details on his philosophy.  Given the popularity of his blog and the success of his workout routines, he’s well qualified to offer some of the best advice around.  I’d say he’s one of the few trainers left who don’t believe that “cardio is dead.”  Combined with the knowledge gained from people you used Treadmill Ninja Master and the follow-up, you probably won’t find anyone who knows more about using cardio for weight loss.

Introduction: Rusty makes it clear that this is a master level course.  There are workout routines for all levels of experience but he goes deep into how to use cardio to lose fat.  You’ll likely have to read it, perform the routines, and then read it again to get the full experience.

Chapter 1: An analysis of some studies that show you may not be burning as many calories as you think after high intensity interval training workouts.  This one was an eye opener for me.

Chapter 2: Burning calories takes time.  Sure, everyone wants to get things done in less time, but the reality is that the best way to burn calories is to train above your lactate threshold.

Chapter 3: The importance of average intensity level and why you can’t train above your lactate threshold for too long.

Chapter 4: Probably the most valuable page in the book for some people…a summary of interval training benefits.

Chapter 5: A deep dive into all those interval training benefits.  If you want to gain the most knowledge, you might want to read this one twice.

Chapter 6: Covers the issue of weight loss vs. fat loss.  Rusty offers a recommended dieting approach to keep you in fat burning mode.

Chapter 7: How to attack stubborn body fat…makes a case for why you should be doing cardio and not just trying to get lean by creating a calorie deficit through dieting.

Chapter 8: Some dieting strategies to optimize the effectiveness of the cardio routine.

Chapter 9: Ways to improve new age fat loss programs like kettlebell training, Zumba, CrossFit, and P90X.

Chapter 10: Why you may be better off focusing on gaining muscle using strength reps and losing fat using cardio.  Some of this knowledge is passed along from the Visual Impact workouts for men and women.  For this cardio routine, intervals are easier to track using machines as well.

Chapter 11: How to use Visual Impact Cardio

Chapter 12: Beginner’s Cycle: 8 week program that anyone should be able to use.  Starts off relatively easy and increasingly gets more challenging.  Workouts range from 30-45 minutes per day for 4-5 days per week.

Chapter 13: Intermediate Cycle: 8 week program for people who have a little more experience.  As in the beginner cycle, workouts last 30-45 minutes per day for 4-5 days per week but are a little more intense.  I’m hoping my wife, who just starting getting back into cardio over the past couple months will test this out.

Chapter 14: Advance Cycle: 8 week program for people who like to torture themselves…or for those who are trying to get in “event ready shape.”  A little pain builds character in my opinion so I’m going to utilize this cycle.  Take into account that I’ve been performing HIIT and other forms of interval training for quite a while.  Still, I shudder when I look at some of the 60 minute workouts starting in week 6.  If you don’t get in the best shape of your life using this routine, then you’re not doing it right.

Chapter 15: Maintenance Plan: after you achieve your goal, there’s no reason to continue exercising 4-5 days per week if you don’t want to.  You should be able to maintain with 3 workouts per week.

Chapter 16: Wrapping it all up!

Visual Impact Cardio Bonus

One bonus of using Visual Impact Cardio is that Rusty is very responsive in replying to comments on his Facebook page.  So if you have any questions on his routines, it’s easy to reach out.  That being said, I’m happy to offer up my advice as needed to reduce the load!  So if you’ve decided to undertake Visual Impact Cardio, then please let me know if you have any challenges along the way.  I’ve also developed a spreadsheet that will fill in all your workout routines once you calculate your lactate threshold.  Since I don’t want to reveal all Rusty’s routines, I’m only providing it to people with a proof of purchase.  Please email me with Visual Impact Cardio in the subject line.

I hope this Visual Impact Cardio review provided a good overview of what is an outstanding program.  The beauty is that you can add this routine to any existing resistance training you are currently doing or perform it entirely on its own.  I wish you the best of luck!

Goals

It’s important to choose a routine that is consistent with your goals.  Why do a mass building routine if you want to burn fat?  Different workouts were made for different people as well.  Same thing goss for diets.  There’s no reason to undertake a highly restrictive diet if you know you won’t be able to stick with it.  For example, a diet that eliminates all fat or sugar may sound great but execution could prove incredibly difficult.

It can be challenging to decide if a program fits your goals.  Reading about the routine and testimonials can help but you never really know until you get the full program for yourself and try it out.

Trust

I think this is one of the most crucial aspects in choosing a workout routine.  Do you trust the person who has designed the routine?  You can read all the testimonials in the world and see all the before and after pictures, but in this day and age, how do you know what’s real?  Take a look at this video I posted on my Facebook page a couple weeks ago:

That’s someone who was able to create “after and before” pictures in a matter of hours.  I’ve read about people who get paid to purposely get out of shape and then magically transform their bodies.  Throw in some lighting techniques and Photoshop editing and anything is possible.

The point is that you have to decide on your own what feels real.  Does the person have a blog where they respond to readers?  Do people who leave testimonials have Facebook pages or blogs so you know they’re real?  Do you feel comfortable with the advice and guidance the expert is offering?  How important are credentials to you?  Bottom line, you have to go out on a limb to trust that a workout routine or diet plan actually works.

Customization

Another big question to consider is whether you want a routine that’s flexible or one that is designed to be followed exactly as is.  At this point in my life, I have a set group of exercises I like to perform.  I don’t really want to spend time learning anything new or purchasing new equipment.  For me, customization and the ability to substitute exercises are very important.  For others, they may want an exact layout and would be willing to do or learn whatever exercises are required.  The best of both worlds are plans that provide exact routines but offer advice on how to customize them.

The other thing to consider with regard to customization is whether to buy a routine or construct your own.  This decision will generally depend on your experience level.  Some people don’t know how to construct a routine or take more comfort in knowing that an expert constructed something for them.  There’s also an in-between.  I’m confident in my ability to construct a routine but am always on the lookout for new tips or ways that I can improve my approach.

Time Commitment

Another factor that should play a role in the selection of a workout routine is time commitment.  At this stage in my life, I don’t like to exercise more than one hour at a time.  Many times I have to cut workouts short at 30 minutes.  More exercise just doesn’t go with my work and family schedule.  As a side note, you probably shouldn’t need to exercise more than 45 minutes per day for 4 days per week but that’s a topic for another day.  The point is that when you’re looking at workout routines, if it seems like too much of a commitment (like P90X), then either decide to do it for a limited time or find an alternative that takes less time.

Diet vs. Exercise

The final thing I consider when choosing a workout routine is whether to use a complete program that offers diet tips or mix and match different approaches.  For example, I like intermittent fasting diets such as Eat Stop Eat and Leangains, so finding a program with specific diet guidelines isn’t very important to me.  Diet and exercise obviously work in tandem but you can certainly pair different programs together as long as the goals are congruent.  Again, it may be difficult to use a fat burning diet with a muscle building workout routine.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, a lot of factors go into choosing a workout routine.  You’ll make mistakes along the way as well.  I’ve purchased several programs in the past that just weren’t helpful.  I got a few good tips but the outlined programs just weren’t right for me based on complexity, time, or required equipment.  Sometimes you just have to recognize your mistakes and move on.  Other times, you might want to step out of your comfort zone and try something entirely new.  All this being said, I’m now considering either doing one of my old go-to routines outlined in Fitness in a Flash or How to Get a Beach Body or trying something completely new.  Surprisingly, I’m leaning toward giving a new approach a shot.  I have a couple ideas in mind but any suggestions are appreciated.  I’m happy to offer my thoughts on a variety of workout routines as well, assuming I’ve heard of them.

Visual Impact Muscle Building Results

As a refresher, feel free to check out my Phase 1 results too.

Fat Gain

At first glance, it appears that I gained almost 3lbs of fat over the past two months.  As I describe below, it’s inevitable that I gained some fat but I’m not entirely convinced I gained quite that much.  The real lesson here is that you are what you eat.

1. Measurement error: I use a bioelectric impedance scale and body fat analyzer to compute my results.  Unfortunately, these devices can be highly variable and susceptible to measurement error.  Additionally, I made some changes to my routine over the past couple months that may have further exacerbated these potential errors.  It might sound stupid, but sometimes the smallest changes can have a significant impact on results.

For example, my age changed during the measurement period.  I’ve taken measurements twice in a row using a one year difference in age and my body fat is 0.5% higher as a result of this change.  This is because the scale assumes a different body composition based on age.  Maybe I was 0.5% fatter all along; that’s irrelevant.  The problem comes in trying to track results from one period to the next.  I would probably be better off just forcing my age to be one year younger until this experiment is completed, but there are so many other variables that it’s not worth it.

Another factor that changed is that I now perform cardio at night.  If I had my preference, I would still perform morning cardio but my wife began Visual Impact for Women, and I thought it would be motivating for us to exercise together.  Again, because body fat analyzers assume a certain amount of water retention, when you exercise can have a significant impact on calculated body fat percentage.  The proof is in the pudding on this since I just took a couple days off and found my body fat was 1% lower.  So either I lost a lot of fat without exercising or the difference in water retention resulted in a higher calculated value during Phase 2.

While I mention these factors, don’t for a second think I’m making excuses for the results above.  The reason I gained fat is clearly due to my diet (or lack thereof!).  I’m just not convinced I gain as much fat as my body fat tester claims.  This is evident when utilizing other measurement techniques as well.  My abs increased about 2mm using a fat caliper while chest and leg measurements didn’t change (indicating a 1lb fat gain).  Using a tape measure, my waist is ¼” larger.  So it’s clear I added some unwanted fat.

2. Diet: Thanksgiving to the Super Bowl is always my worst time period when it comes to eating well.  Between holiday parties, football, birthdays, vacations, and leftovers, I’m surrounded by junk food.  While I can be pretty disciplined, I have a hard time throwing away or wasting food.  As a result, I ate a lot of food that was high in sugar and fat.  This is a recipe for fat gain.

I normally advocate having a weekly cheat day in order to increase your metabolism and help balance out your cravings.  If I had taken that approach, I’m almost certain I would have seen no fat gain and quite possibly fat loss during Phase 2.  Unfortunately, as it worked out, I counted 36 cheat days over the past 60 days.  Basically I cheated 4 times per week.  This wasn’t simply slipping and having a cookie or a piece of candy here and there…there were days that I had cake, ice cream, pastries and even entire pizzas.  All in all, “disaster” is the best way to describe the last two months when it comes to eating.  In hindsight, I’m surprised I didn’t gain 10lbs of fat.

Muscle Gain

I’ll freely admit that I gained fat during Phase 2 but I’m adamant that I also gained muscle, despite results to the contrary according to my body fat scale.  All the measurement problems described above relate to the muscle calculations as well since they’re reliant on the same assumptions.

1. Measurements: while I gained ¼” on my waist, I also gained 1” on my shoulders and chest and ½” on my arms.  It’s hard for me to believe that these gains were the result of increased fat levels rather than muscle gain especially since my arms, shoulders, and chest feel and look a lot more defined as well.

2. Weight lifting: in my opinion the real proof that I didn’t lose muscle is that I am now stronger than I ever recall being.  By the end of Phase 2 I was lifting more for 5 reps than I was 4 months ago for 3 reps.  To me, increased strength is highly correlated with increased muscle mass.  That being said, an argument can be made that my strength may have increased due to an increase in fat.  Fat provides more leverage which can lead to heavier lifts.

3. Bodyweight training: even if fat was providing more leverage for weight lifting, fat is generally of no value when it comes to bodyweight training.  In fact, when your weight increases, your body generally needs to have a proportional increase in muscle strength just to do the same number of bodyweight exercises.  I’m actually doing more reps for bodyweight exercises than I have in the past.

Perspective

All these factors combined lead me to believe that I really probably gained 1-2lbs of muscle and gained 1-2lbs of fat as well.  Not the best results, but not a huge disappointment either.  Consider the following:

1. I pretty much ate what I wanted, when I wanted it for the past month and still managed to make some progress without a complete setback.  There are some years I’ve gained more than 5lbs during the holiday season.  This year I gained at most 3lbs of fat and more likely 1-2lbs of fat despite the indulgences in junk food.

2. Looking back, while my body fat is higher than it was to start Phase 2, I’m still well ahead of where I’ve been in the past.  When I was previously at this weight, my body fat was 2-3% higher.

3. Consistent with the statement above, my upper body measurements are comparable to those I had when I was 5lbs heavier meaning that I’ve added muscle in the right places.

4. Finally, I’m in a great position to start Phase 3 where the focus turns to fat burning.  I’ve had my fill of junk food which means I should easily be able to go for 8 weeks without too many cravings.

What’s Next?

After a full week off, it’s on to Phase 3 of Visual Impact Muscle Building.  If I achieve similar results to my Six Pack Abs Workout which was built around many of the Phase 3 concepts, I should find myself 5lbs lighter and back to my lowest level of body fat ever.  More importantly, I’ll be at that lower level with significantly more muscle mass.  Once I tack on the bonus phase, I expect I’ll have gained almost 10lbs of lean upper body muscle with little to no fat gain.  If all goes as expected, that would be well worth the 6-7 months effort!

Weight Loss

Let’s start with weight loss since most people are focused on the scale.  Some days the scale can be your best friend; other days it’s your worst enemy.  Personally, my weight fluctuates by up to 3-4lbs day-to-day.  Why is there so much variability?  It’s all about water retention.  If you perform carb cycling like I do, then be prepared to weigh more after high carb days and less after low carb days.  If you have a simple weight loss goal, you could follow the Atkins approach, reduce carbs, and watch the pounds (of water weight!) melt off.  Guess what though, when you inevitably start eating carbs again, your weight will spike back up.

The other problem with focusing exclusive on weight loss is that you don’t account for muscle gain.  This is especially true for those who are new to resistance training.  Just because your weight goes up doesn’t necessarily mean you’re getting fatter.  In fact, if you replace fat with muscle, you’ll find that your weight remains unchanged despite a positive change in health and appearance.

Fat Loss

Hopefully the above flaws make it obvious that weight loss shouldn’t be the primary goal…it should be fat loss.  While there may be a general correlation between weight loss and fat loss, it’s far better to focus on fat loss to the extent possible.  How can you effectively track your fat loss though?  You could start by trying a body fat scale or caliper.  The problems with body fat scales are that they are also influenced by water retention and a variety of other factors.  I’ve seen my body fat fluctuate by 1-2% day-to-day because of this.  Calipers are marginally better.  The challenge is that you’re measuring within millimeters and it’s hard to measure the same exact area every time.  What about using a tape measure?  Again, a tape measure can be just as inaccurate as anything else because you’re trying to measure within fractions of inches sometimes.

With all these flawed methods, it’s often best to gauge yourself by looking in the mirror, taking before/after pictures, and/or seeing how your clothes fit.  If you’re training for looks, this is probably what’s most important to you anyway.

BMI vs. Body Fat Percentage

What if you’re training for health purposes though?  Is BMI or body fat percentage more important?  You might think that BMI is more important since it seems to be used as a general indicator of potential health risks.  However, the use of BMI is prevalent because it’s an easy calculation.  It only requires your height and weight.  The problem is that two people could be the same height and weight but have different levels of body fat.  Those people probably don’t have the same health risks, especially if one has extra body fat stored around the waist.

So maybe body fat percentage is more important then.  How many times has someone ever told you to have your body fat measured though (vs. the number of times that you’ve been weighed)?   Personally, I don’t ever recall being asked about my body fat percentage so it may not be the most critical determinant of overall health either.  In my opinion, a better determinant than BMI or body fat percentage may be waist circumference.  It’s a pretty simple measurement and really does account for both weight and fat since a decrease in those factors tends to lead to a smaller waist.  Additionally, excess stomach fat, especially visceral fat which surrounds your organs, can result in a higher risk of heart disease or diabetes.  If you’re male with a waist in excess of 40” or a female with a waist in excess of 35”, you have an elevated risk.  If you have a high BMI in conjunction with a large waist, you have an even higher risk.

Weight Loss vs. Fat Loss

Summing everything up, it’s good to focus on weight loss since there is a correlation between losing weight and losing body fat.  However, if you have a reasonable means to track your body fat, it’s really best to put your effort toward losing fat since the scale may be deceptive.  With either method, it’s best to track trends over time.  Frankly, as long as you’re happy with your appearance, don’t be overly concerned with arbitrary readings from a scale or body fat tester.  Finally, if health is your focus, BMI, body fat percentage, and waist circumference can all be used in conjunction with each other to determine your overall health and risk factors.

As for my wife, based on the methods above, it actually appears that she lost around 2lbs of fat while adding 2lbs of muscle in 3 weeks which makes sense because she’s relatively new to resistance training and has been eating well and performing cardio in line with the recommendations from Visual Impact for Women.  It’s early but with this knowledge, it’s much more encouraging for her to feel like she’s making progress rather than focusing on the scale and worrying that her hard work isn’t leading to any results.

Can you provide any sample workout plans?

This is one of the more popular questions since people are always looking for a well laid out plan.  Personally, I think every person is unique and should develop the knowledge to create their own workout routines.  Absent that, I’m happy to assist in creating something that meets your goals.  First I’d recommend checking out the following resources where I provide some sample workout routines and diet plans:

Fitness in a Flash
How to Get a Beach Body in 2 Months or Less
Six Pack Abs Workout Routine, Diet Plan & Exercises
Intense Home Workout
Workout Routines for Beginners
Pushing Exercises & Pulling Exercises

How many calories should I eat to lose weight?  How many calories should I eat to gain muscle?

This is a tough one because counting calories is such a challenge.  If you’re confident in your ability to approximate your caloric intake, I would recommend eating 10x your target weight if you’re trying to lose weight and 15x your target weight if you’re trying to gain muscle.  Those are just starting points.  I recommend adjusting week to week.  Additionally, I find that when and what you eat can be just as important as how much you eat.  Eating a clean, healthy diet with limited refined sugar will go a long way toward helping you lose fat or gain muscle.  Additionally, using a strategy like calorie cycling where you eat more on days that you exercise can help you achieve either goal as well.

Why am I not losing weight?
Weight Loss Math
Calorie Cycling

How can I gain muscle mass?

Train to failure and eat at a slight caloric surplus.  Cumulative fatigue by utilizing training to failure (sarcoplasmic hypertrophy) is the real key to getting bigger muscles.  I only recommend a modest caloric surplus to limit fat gain.  Per my comment above, the cleaner you eat, the more likely you’ll gain muscle instead of fat as well.  Eating your biggest meal after a workout is another great strategy to supply your muscles with all the nutrients they need to grow.

Visual Impact Muscle Building Results: Phase 1
What is the best way to gain muscle mass?
Skinny Guy Workout
Low Weight High Reps Training to Failure
Best Muscle Building Diet

How can I increase my strength?

Perform heavy weight, low rep training while avoiding failure.

Strength Reps vs. Muscle Mass Reps
High Weight Low Reps Superset Workout Routine
How to Increase Bench Press
How to Increase Pushups and Increase Pull Ups

If I can’t do pushups or pull ups, how can I start bodyweight training?  Are there more advanced bodyweight exercises?

Utilized a progressive training routine in which you start with a very basic movement and gradually increase the difficulty until you can perform pushups.  For example, you may start out by doing wall pushups.  There are plenty of highly challenging bodyweight exercises but I find the ones outlined in Convict Conditioning to be the best.  You could also incorporate gymnastics or rings training to increase the difficulty of bodyweight training.

Bodyweight Calisthenics Workout: Progressive Training Routine
The Best Bodyweight Exercises
Convict Conditioning 2
Rings Training

Can you recommend a good cardio routine?  When should I perform cardio?

My preferred cardio routine is as follows:

2 minute warm up
8 minute short interval HIIT (15 second sprint, 45 second rest, repeated for 8 sets): this increases HGH levels and releases fatty acids into the bloodstream
25 minute steady state cardio: this burns fatty acids
10 minute long interval HIIT (1 minute fast jog, 1 minute slow jog repeated for 5 sets): this reduces glycogen levels and provides for an increased after-burn effect

To the extent possible, I recommend performing cardio in the morning on an empty stomach.  If you perform HIIT along with a weight training routine, I would either perform on separate days or do HIIT after weight training.  Watch out for overtraining as I wouldn’t recommend performing HIIT more than 3 days per week and would always take at least one day off between sessions.  You can perform low intensity cardio for extra calorie burning as needed.  Note that I don’t perform any weight training for my legs either.  HIIT give my legs the strength and definition I desire.

Don’t forget to switch the routine up from time to time.  You can vary the length of sprint intervals, the ratio of sprint to recovery time, or even the type of machine or exercise you perform.  From time to time, I like to utilize the Tabata Protocol and plyometric training exercises.

If you want a more formalized approach, then I highly recommend Visual Impact Cardio.  There’s no better approach to using cardio to lose body fat.

The Best Cardio For Weight Loss
Advanced HIIT Training
Morning Cardio on an Empty Stomach (Fasted Cardio)
Cardio Before or After Weights
Benefits of a Low Intensity Cardio Workout
Tabata Protocol
Plyometric Training Exercises

What is circuit training?

Circuit training involves moving from one exercise to the next with little to no rest.  Doing so provides a nice cardiovascular workout that helps burn fat in addition to preserving muscle.  In essence, circuit training can serve a similar purpose as HIIT as it increases HGH levels and releases fatty acids into the bloodstream.  I recommend HIIT for leg training and ending weight training days with upper body circuit training.  My circuits include weights, bodyweight exercises, kettlebells, and even boxing.  For some bonus fat burning, add 15 minutes of steady state cardio after circuit training to burn the fatty acids in your bloodstream.

Circuit Training Exercises
Circuit Training Workout Routine
Kettlebell Workout Routines
Boxing Workouts

How can I spot reduce belly fat?

Despite what infomercials would have you believe, you can’t.  Unfortunately many people think crunches will help them reduce belly fat and get better abs.  The truth is that you can’t spot reduce any fat.  Losing fat takes place across the entire body.  This myth predicates from the fact that you can increase the size of specific muscles through resistance training.  Therefore it seems logical that you should also be able to reduce fat in specific areas.  This just isn’t the case though.  Belly fat in particular is very stubborn and requires a good diet and high intensity exercise to eliminate.  Training your abs is of no value for reducing belly fat but is important for increasing core strength.  Crunches are not the best exercise though as they can cause back problems over the long term.  Instead, focus on exercises like planks.

How to Lose Stubborn Body Fat
How to get washboard abs?
Best Ab Workout
Best Core Exercises

What is intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting is where you go without calories for a set amount of time, generally between 14-24 hours.  My first exposure to intermittent fasting came through Eat Stop Eat.  It allowed me to lose a lot of weight without giving up my favorite foods.  Essentially I skipped breakfast and lunch two days per week.  This created enough of a caloric deficit to allow me to eat what I wanted the rest of the week and still lose weight.  Since I’ve gotten in better shape, I’ve embraced more of a daily fasting approach where I try to go 15-16 hours without eating.  In this case, I stop eating after dinner and simply eat a later breakfast the following day.  This type of approach has proven helpful in reducing stubborn belly fat.

Intermittent Fasting Results
Intermittent Fasting Weight Loss Approaches

Do you recommend any supplements?

I don’t think supplements should be a requirement of any fitness program.  However, if you’re trying to get every advantage possible, there are a few to consider.  For gaining muscle, creatine has been proven effective for gaining strength and muscle mass.  I also utilize BCAAs when I perform fasted training to ensure that I don’t lose muscle.  For losing weight, I recommend natural substances like caffeine, capsaicin, cinnamon, and green tea.  Finally, for overall health, I recommend a multi-vitamin and essential fatty acids.  If you’re eating a healthy diet with plenty of nutrients, then you may be able to skip the multi-vitamin.  Same goes for essential fatty acids if you eat enough fish.

Best Supplements for Weight Loss and Muscle Gain
Creatine Benefits
BCAA Benefits
Krill Oil Benefits

What are your thoughts on protein and post workout nutrition?

I think the amount of protein a person needs is overblown by the fitness industry…primarily because there’s a lot of money to be made from supplement companies that produce protein.  If you’re aggressively trying to gain muscle, I think 1g/lb is more than enough.  If you’re trying to lose fat, you could probably eat as little as 0.6-0.7g/lb.

As for post workout nutrition, it’s an optimal time to eat your biggest meal if possible.  Your body is primed to absorb nutrients.  While protein shakes are great for post workout nutrition, I prefer to simply eat a real meal.  I used to drink chocolate milk after a workout but found that the refined sugar led to cravings that resulted in overeating post workout.  In other words, while I should have just had 1-2 glasses of chocolate milk, I’d either end up drinking a carton or eating other foods which resulted in a caloric intake that was too high.  Don’t forget that carbs are just as important as protein after a workout.  In general, I eat within an hour of a weight training workout to provide my muscles with nutrients but wait 1-2 hours after HIIT before eating to maximize the HGH release.

How Much Protein Do I Need Per Day?
Post Workout Nutrition

How do I measure body fat percentage?

This is a real challenge.  Obviously the best way is to be professionally measured but that can get expensive.  A simple approach is to compare your body to pictures of people online.  Despite their inaccuracy, I tend to use bioelectrical impedance devices along with a skinfold caliper.  Additionally, I track my body measurements with a measuring tape.

Measuring Body Fat Percentage & Measuring Muscle Mass Percentage
Best Ways to Measure Body Fat Percentage

How can I look like XYZ celebrity?

The truth is that you probably can’t.  Let me rephrase, you can but it requires an extreme level of dedication and hard work.  Remember that it’s a celebrity’s job to get in shape for a movie role.  Also remember that they don’t necessarily maintain the same level of physical fitness after the movie is completed.  Some simply get in event shape and then let themselves go.  Another challenge in looking like a celebrity is that you might not have as much free time to exercise or might not have the ability to eat as healthy as they do.  It doesn’t hurt that many have personal trainers and nutrionists to ensure that they stay focused.  That being said, if you aspire to look like a certain celebrity, try your best to achieve that goal.  Just realize the challenges in doing so.

Are Celebrity Workouts and Diets Effective?

I plan on updating these fitness questions from time to time so if you’d like me to add more frequently asked fitness questions and answers, please leave your comment or question below.  I hope you find success with your fitness routine in the New Year!

Free Workout Program and Diet Plan

Before I review the best workout programs, I’d like to do a little self promotion.  My fitness guides are far from the best, but I’d like to think they offer a number of useful tips for people both new and old to exercise.  The best part is that they’re free.

Fitness in a Flash: my free diet and exercise guide to help you get lean, defined muscles without spending hours in the gym

How to Get a Beach Body in 2 Months or Less: my free book on fat burning workouts and diets for men and women

Best Fitness Tips: I’ve categorized all my best articles to help you easily find the information you’re looking for

Hopefully these resources help guide you in developing your own fitness program.  On to the best programs!

Best Workout Program for Men

Hands down, I think Visual Impact Muscle Building is the best workout program for men.  While it’s technically a muscle building course, there’s so much knowledge strewn in here that you can use the strategies for whatever goal you’re trying to achieve.  Trying to gain as much mass as possible?  Do Phase 1.  Want more of a maintenance approach to gain some muscle while burning some fat?  Do Phase 2.  How about a focus on reducing body fat while maintaining lean muscles?  Do Phase 3.  Of course, the best choice is to go through all these phases.  I did so two years ago with good results and I’m now working through again (read about my Phase 1 results).  Bottom line, Visual Impact Muscle Building is a solid 6 month program and also gives you all the tools you need to develop your own routines for the future.

Best Workout Program for Women

Workout programs for women don’t always focus on the right areas.  That’s why I like Visual Impact for Women.  It was designed to help women get the slim, feminine look rather than the muscular bodybuilder look.  There are a lot of unique tips and strategies that you won’t find in other workout programs.  Additionally, the 12 week cardio course is exceptionally well designed and serves as a great routine on its own.  Of course, I recommend that women incorporate resistance training as well and Visual Impact for Women offers plenty of guidance on the best way to get toned, not bulky.

Best Diet Plans

It’s tough to recommend a best diet plan since everyone’s needs are so unique when it comes to eating.  Any diet plan can simply recommend that you eat less calories than you burn.  It’s managing to do that in a way that doesn’t adversely impact your lifestyle or result in rebound weight gain that is most challenging.  That’s why my preferred approach is intermittent fasting.

For beginners, I would recommend Eat Stop Eat.  This diet plan helped me get back in good shape a few years ago while still allowing me to enjoy the foods I loved.  It involves fasting for 24 hours for 1-2 days per week.  It might sound challenging but once you get used to it, it’s a phenomenal program.

If you’re looking to get really lean, I would recommend the Leangains approach.  This involves daily fasting for 16 hours and also includes calorie cycling and meal timing components.  A unique aspect of the Leangains approach is that it can help a person lose fat, gain muscle, or do both.

For those who can’t handle intermittent fasting, I think the best diet plans allow for flexible eating.  Calorie restrictive diets ultimately fail in the long-term since your body can only go so low for so long.  Additionally, restrictions are psychological torture as well.  Both Cheat Your Way Thin and the Anything Goes Diet offer ways to lose weight without restricting what you eat.

Best Rapid Fat Loss Diet Plan

Finally, for those who want to rapidly lose a lot of weight, I would recommend the Xtreme Fat Loss Diet.  In essence, it combines fasting with strategic re-feeds and a lot of exercise.  This is a hardcore approach that I would only recommend to people who are looking to get in the best shape of their life for an event (read about my results).

Best Workout Programs and Best Diet Plans

So there you have my list of best workout programs and best diet plans.  With most people highly motivated by the start of the new year, I’d recommend starting one of these plans and sticking with it.  The key is finding a workout program and diet plan that you actually enjoy doing…or at least one that doesn’t feel burdensome!

My Approach

While I could have performed Phase 1 exactly as laid out in Visual Impact, I chose to somewhat tweak the routine.  That’s the beauty of the program; there’s enough knowledge to let you customize the program to meet your own goals and constraints.  For me, I preferred to do 3 sets of 12 reps rather than perform the scheme outlined in Visual Impact.  I also performed different exercises than recommended and added in bodyweight training, rings, kettlebells, and boxing.  On the diet side, I chose to follow the Leangains approach as closely as I could.

Visual Impact Muscle Building Results

So what ultimately happened during the 2 months of phase 1?  As you can see from the above graph, I gained 7.75lbs.  I only gained 0.25lbs of fat meaning I gained 7.5lbs of lean muscle.  By definition, lean muscle includes everything but fat (i.e. water weight).  I was just as concerned with gains in skeletal muscle, which is what you increase through resistance training.  I gained 4lbs of skeletal muscle during the 2 months.  You can read more about Measuring Body Fat Percentage & Measuring Muscle Mass Percentage if you’re interested in how I track results.

Let’s dive a little further into my results.  You can see that I only gained 2lbs during the first month while losing 1.5lbs of fat.  Because of prior experience with “bulking” in which I ate way too much food and ended up gaining way too much fat, I was very cautious in adding calories to my diet.  I slowly added in foods like fruits and nuts and expanded portion sizes at dinner rather than drinking protein shake after protein shake like the old days.

As you can see, I started gaining a significant amount of weight during the second month, primarily muscle but with some fat gain as well.  This happened because I finally found a good balance of how many excess calories to eat.  Unfortunately, there was some fat gain during this time period due to the holiday season.  Thanksgiving combined with a holiday party resulted in some bad eating habits and far more cheat days than I wanted.

At the end of the 2 months, I was thrilled with the results since I gained a significant amount of weight and only a small amount of fat.  More importantly, my wife actually noticed.  About a month into the program, she commented on how muscular I looked.  That was due to “the pump” after I exercised though.  Right before Thanksgiving, she actually thought my abs were as defined as they’ve ever been which makes sense because I had lost some fat.  I’d remind you that this came during what was supposed to be a muscle building program…muscle gains are usually accompanied by fat gains.  Finally, after I told her the final results from Phase 1 of Visual Impact, she told me that it looked like all the weight gain was in my upper body.  That’s the other key feature of Visual Impact…I didn’t want to put on weight in my lower body or abs.  The 8lbs I gained was targeted toward my upper body.

Lessons Learned

1. Forgot about muscle building approaches that advocate eating thousands of calories above maintenance.  It’s better to take a slow approach and put on muscle without putting on fat.  Where you add the muscle is just as important as how much muscle you add.

2. Get really lean before starting a muscle building program.  The first time through Visual Impact, my results were good but not nearly this good.  By being near my lowest body fat level ever, my body was primed to add muscle without adding fat.  Use the tips from Phase 3 if you need to reduce your body fat.

3. Eat clean to avoid fat gain.  When keeping my body fat between 10-12%, I can be pretty lenient on my diet and have plenty of junk food.  In other words, it’s about the quantity of calories, not the quality.  Now that I’m trying to stay between 8-10% body fat while gaining muscle, the quality of calories is just as important as the quantity.

4. My muscles don’t like to fail.  About 6 weeks into Phase 1, my strength gains pretty much came to a screeching halt.  When you train your muscles to fail, they eventually adapt and learn to fail.  I much prefer heavy weight strength training with adequate rest, ensuring my muscles don’t fail.  Good thing Phases 2 and 3 are right around the corner!

5. The holidays are a good time to start a muscle building program.  You’re going to be eating excess calories anyway, so you might as well try to turn them into muscle.  Unfortunately, unless you’re really disciplined, fat gain is inevitable.  For me it’s all part of the fitness-lifestyle balance.  I’m willing to accept some fat gain if it means I get to enjoy time with family and friends.  There will be plenty of time to burn off the fat later.

What’s Next?

I’m moving onto Phase 2 of Visual Impact Muscle Building.  I’ll continue the Leangains approach for eating.  I suspect that I’ll gain some fat and muscle during the first month since I have more holiday lunches, dinners, and parties than I can count.  I’ll likely maintain my weight during the second month but reduce my body fat percentage by focusing on converting fat into muscle and increasing overall definition.  I’ll plan on reporting my Visual Impact Muscle Building results from Phase 2 after that before going into fat burning mode during Phase 3.

The Best Muscle Building Diet Plan

Most muscle building diet plans focus on eating a lot of calories.  However, this subjects you to potential fat gain.  Whenever I’ve previously tried this approach, I always ended up eating too much and adding a good deal of fat to go along with muscle mass.  Then I would have to work really hard to eliminate the fat while trying to preserve muscle.  Generally known as the bulk and cut method, I personally hated this approach.  I prefer an overall lean look and bulking up by adding both fat and muscle just doesn’t appeal to me.  That’s why I think the best muscle building diet plan focuses on adding lean muscle without adding fat.  The Leangains approach utilizes a number of advanced strategies to optimize this.

Leangains Guide

You could spend hours reading the Leangains site but here’s a brief overview of the strategies I try to implement from Martin Berkhan’s Leangains Guide:

• Intermittent fasting: 16 hour daily fast followed by 8 hour feeding
• Fasted training
• Calorie and macronutrient cycling
• Majority of calories ingested in post workout meal
• Mostly clean eating
• No set number of meals during feeding window: 2-3 meals generally preferred

Delving deeper into some of these recommendations, you’ll find that a 16 hour daily fast is great for fat burning.  Ensuring that you get high quality calories during the 8 hour feeding window, especially after training, is great for muscle building.  So you have a “best of both worlds” scenario where your body is in a fat burning state when it’s less active and a muscle building state after exercising when it needs nutrients the most.

Ideally you’ll eat more carbs on days that you exercise to optimize mass gains.  Furthermore, it’s best to eat your biggest meal after working out when your body is most anabolic.  Shifting gears, exercising in a fasted state results in a greater level of fat burning.  Ingesting BCAAs prior to fasted training will help preserve muscle mass while still allowing you to remain in a materially fasted state.

Martin Berkhan of Leangains

The great thing about the Leangains approach is that you can tailor it to fat burning or muscle building.  You can simply increase or decrease your caloric intake while sticking to these core principles.  Ideally you’ll be able to get really lean without losing muscle mass or gain a good deal of muscle mass without gaining fat.  The best part is that it’s a perfect maintenance approach as well since it’s relatively lenient as far as a diet plan goes.

My Approach

I utilize a hybrid of the protocols laid out in Martin Berkhan’s Leangains Guide.  In general, I fast from 6pm to 9am or 10am (15-16 hours).  I like to have my largest meal at dinner since that’s family time.  On weekends, my approach involves eating a light breakfast at 9am or 10am, training around 1pm, and then having my largest meal around 5pm.  Weekdays are more challenging because of my work schedule.  Two days per week, I do early morning fasted cardio after ingesting BCAAs.  Two other days I do nighttime resistance training after dinner.  On those two nights, the eating window is extended to 9pm so I only end up fasting 12-13 hours after.  I also employ calorie cycling and carb cycling where I eat the most on days that I exercise.  Combining this approach with the Visual Impact Muscle Building workouts provides an optimal way to gain lean muscle mass.  In fact, I’d argue that these programs respectively constitute the best muscle building diet plan and the best muscle building workout routine.