HSP Nucleus Overload Training Program and Ebook - Remastered - 3rd Edition [PDF]

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HSP HSP

NUCLEUS OVERLOAD TRAINING

TM

REMASTERED EDITION

stretch

YOUR ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EXTREME MUSCLE GROWTH

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TABLE OF CONTENTS ABOUT ME……………………………….…………….2 INTRO TO HSP TRAININGTM………………….....….3 SUMMARY OF KEY TERMS & GUIDES…….....…..4 GAMEPLAN………………..………………..………..18 HSP FULL BODY WORKOUT SPLIT..….……..….21 HSP PUSH/PULL/LEGS SPLIT………….….…...…31 HSP UPPER/LOWER SPLIT…………………...…..37 HSP BRO-SPLIT……………………...……….……..43 HSP HOME WORKOUT SPLIT….......................…49 HSP EXAMPLE TEMPLATE……………............….50 RECOVERY GUIDE…………...……………….……51 MACROS & NUTRITION GUIDE……………......…52 MEAL PLAN INFO……………...…………….…..….53 TEAM3DALPHA DAILY ROUTINE…………………54 FAQs……………………..…………………...……….55 REFERENCES…………………….…………………60 DISCLAIMER…………………………….…..……….63

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❓ ABOUT ME Migan is the founder of Team3DAlpha, and the creator of Nucleus Overload™, HSP Training™, and the Team3DAlpha Daily Routine. After years of combating severe depression, dropping out of college 3 times, and living an empty, purposeless life, he decided to ditch all excuses, picked himself back up, and turned his entire life around. He immediately went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Corporate Finance and a Bachelor of Science degree in Management Consulting, Strategy & Analysis. He is a big proponent of “zero excuse self-development”, and through his “Team3DALpha Daily Routine”, educated himself on various topics including Neuroscience, Military Science, Strategy, Muscle Hypertrophy, Stock Trading, Human Behavior & Psychology, Economics, Religion, History, Anthropology, Philosophy, and Human Evolution. Furthermore, his biggest passion lies in the realm of muscle hypertrophy, where he has over 16 years of experience and has been training individuals for over 13 years, specializing in creating rapid muscle growth in even the worst “Hard-gainers”. This broad base of knowledge and experience makes him an excellent problem solver and critical thinker, as he is able to pool information from various disciplines and use it to simplify and solve some of the most complex problems. Nevertheless, his main purpose in life is simply helping broken men recover, grow, and transform into the Kings they were always meant to be.

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INTRO TO HSP TRAINING In order to understand HSP Training, you must first understand how muscles grow. The goal of skeletal muscle is to produce force, that is, to move an object towards or away from you. You have slow twitch and fast twitch muscle fibers. The former are primarily used for endurance, or low intensity every day tasks. The latter are primarily used for explosive, high intensity (heavy) activities. It is mainly those high threshold, fast twitch fibers that are capable of growing the most, and they are therefore the ones that we wish to target in our workouts. You must first recruit those high threshold units and fibers, and then fatigue them in order to cause them to adapt and grow. You can recruit them in one of 3 ways: lifting heavy, lifting light or moderate weights to failure, or lifting light or moderate weights when the muscle is in a fatigued state. All of those methods will result in high motor unit recruitment, mainly due to the force-velocity relationship and the Henneman size principle. The former states that muscles produce the most force when they contract slowly. When you are lifting heavy weights, muscle contractions are slow, and therefore the actin-myosin bridges have plenty of time to cross and produce force. When you are lifting moderate or light weights to failure, the first few repetitions are too fast and too easy for enough force to be produced, but as the slow twitch muscles begin to tire, the fast twitch muscles eventually take over (Henneman size principle), and as you approach failure, your contraction speed becomes slower and slower, causing each recruited fiber to produce as much force as possible. This is why tremendous and equal gains can be achieved regardless of the amount of weight on the bar, and is one of the reasons why Dropsets and Rest-Pause training works so well on top of being extremely time efficient. But despite this, different training techniques have their own advantages and disadvantages. The benefits of heavy lifting include faster strength gains, faster motor unit recruitment, greater increases in bone density, greater release of anabolic hormones (if using compound movements) and other growth factors. The disadvantages include a greater risk of injury, connective tissue damage, longer workouts, CNS fatigue (if coupled with high volume), and a reduction in total weekly volume and training frequency. Moderate to lighter weights offer better pumps, better lactic acid buildup (which is a sign that fast twitch muscles are being recruited and fatigued), better improvements in work capacity and cardiovascular endurance, shorter workouts, smaller risk of injury or connective tissue damage, and are able to be performed far more frequently leading to higher weekly volumes. And since volume is the number one driver of hypertrophy, the more volume you can perform and recover from, the faster you will adapt, grow, and be able to progressively overload over time. See, many people have it backwards. They believe that you must progressively overload in order to grow, when really is it because you have already grown and adapted from your previous workouts that your body is able to progressively overload. Thus, progressive overload is a RESULT of training and hypertrophy, not the cause of muscle growth. The goal is to therefore focus on increasing the amount of training sessions and volume you can perform in a week, because those will yield the fastest adaptations, and therefore the fastest injury-free increases in strength and hypertrophy. Another training technique that HSP is based upon is weighted stretch and heavy eccentrics. Those allow you to maximally recruit fast twitch fibers, and even lowers the threshold needed for them to activate. They also lead to the biggest increases in IGF-1 and the biggest drops in Myostatin, while simultaneously reducing the amount of volume you have to do to grow. A 5 set per muscle protocol utilizing weighted stretch and/or eccentrics is equivalent to a 10 set protocol that uses only concentric reps. So you are getting the same results, in far less time. HSP Training combines all of these principles (high volume, high frequency, high motor unit recruitment, time efficiency, bone density, weighted stretch, progressive overload, maximum anabolic response, maximum pump etc.) all in one program. The H stands for Heavy, the S for Stretch, and the P for Pump.

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SUMMARY OF KEY TERMS (ALPHABETICAL ORDER A-Z) Use CTRL+F to find keywords you’re searching for ADIPONECTIN – Mainly released by fat cells, this powerful protein actually helps decrease body fat by improving insulin sensitivity and glucose metabolism. It is also helps curb inflammation and has antioxidant effects on the body. Obese people or those with type-2 diabetes have very low levels of adiponectin relative to leaner individuals. The simplest and most effective way to increase adiponectin levels is to obviously exercise, decrease body fat, and eat a nutritious diet. AMINO ACIDS (AA) – The building blocks of all proteins, and ultimately life itself. There are 21 amino acids, many of which are essential (your body cannot synthesize them) and must be taken from your diet. The 10 essential amino acids are Phenylalanine, Valine, Tryptophan, Threonine, Isoleucine, Methionine, Histidine, Arginine, Lysine and Leucine. Many of the non-essential amino acids are also synthesized from these 10 essential A.As, and the same goes for your body’s crucial neurotransmitters such as dopamine (controls motivation) and serotonin (controls mood and well-being). Other amino acids very crucial for bodybuilding include Glutamine and Taurine. In addition to protein synthesis, those 2 are largely responsible for energy, recovery, performance, strength, digestive health, and your immune system. ANDROGEN RECEPTOR (AR) – if Testosterone is the key, the AR is the lock. Testosterone must bind to this receptor in order to do the majority of its functions inside the cell (although it has some non-genomic functions such as activation of the mTOR pathway). The AR is the single most important molecule when it comes to building muscle (apart from the Myostatin signaling pathway), and it is the most predictive of how much muscle a person can build before they even begin training. The more nuclei a muscle has, the more androgen receptors it also contains, which is another reason why my brainchild theory “Nucleus Overload” works so well, since it increases the AR density within the muscle. Also, AR activity is highly increased after a workout (especially full body workouts), and increases even more if you train frequently during that same week, which is another reason why training a muscle multiple times a week is so beneficial. Also, lifting heavy (around 80% of your 1RM) drastically increases AR and beta catenin binding (beta catenin is another protein that binds to the AR before it translocates to the nucleus of the cell to begin DNA transcription). ASHWAGANDHA – also called Withania somnifera, is an Ayurvedic herb which has been proven to increase strength, muscle size, body composition, and recovery ability in men mainly due to its antioxidant properties and effects on Testosterone and cortisol. Doses at around 500 mg a day seemed to be most effective. BONE DENSITY TRAINING – There is a direct correlation between the density of your bones and the amount of muscle mass you carry. There are many reasons for this. Heavier bones obviously require larger muscles to move them, and the most anabolic hormones involved in hypertrophy also have growth effects on bone (think growth hormone, testosterone, and IGF-1). That is why the bones of deceased weightlifters are far denser than the bones of the average person. It is also why those with weak muscles (elderly populations or those with sarcopenia) have extremely brittle and weak bones. If you are

5 extremely skinny, aging, or simply want to maximize size fast, one of the most important things you should focus on is increasing the density of your bones. The best way to increase bone density naturally is by not only lifting heavier weights, but to focus on movements that simultaneously recruit as many muscles as possible, ideally while in motion (such as farmer walks, yoke/Barbell carries, barbell lunges etc.). The best of these movements are what make up the “H” (and some of the “S”) exercises of HSP TrainingTM. BLOOD-FLOW RESTRICTION TRAINING (BFR) – Originally named Kaatsu, created by Yoshiaki Sato in Japan back in the 1960s, it is a method of training that allows you to build the same amount of muscle as traditional heavy lifting, while using much lighter loads, and it accomplishes this by restricting the amount of venous blood flow return from the muscles back to the heart. There are literally hundreds of studies worldwide backing up the effectiveness of this training method, as it has been tested on every population type (young, old, male, female, untrained, trained). Substantial muscle growth (pure muscle, not just fluid) has been observed with weights as low as 30% of your 1RM (the equivalent of about 60-70 reps), but you are not obliged to use a weight that low. You can use 40, 50 or even 60+% of your 1RM, and the results will be the same. So it is a great tool to use to increase the intensity and effectiveness of your workouts if you find yourself stuck with lighter weights, or if you simply want to maximize the pump, which BFR is notorious for doing. Also, since it produces very little muscle damage relative to other training methods, it can be performed several times a day or week, for even faster results. In fact, the fastest muscle growth seen in humans so far is from BFR. The mechanisms by which BFR works include increased EMG activation, fast twitch fiber recruitment, cell swelling, increased lactate, cytokine and anabolic hormone (GH & IGF-1) production, decrease in Myostatin, and increased activation and fusion of satellite cells. To apply BFR, simply wrap the recommended bands across your upper arm (or upper thigh for lower body training), using a tightness of about 7 out of 10 (10 being the tightest you can go) and pump out your reps and sets as usual. If you plan to use this for Nucleus OverloadTM , stick to my recommended set and rep ranges (5 sets of 15-20 reps close to failure, less than 20 sec rest). The pump and burn you will get from this is so insane that you may not be able to complete your full 15-20 reps in each subsequent set during that workout, but as long as you are going close to failure are able to crank out at least 5 reps, you’ll reap the full benefits of each set. And yes, even though the bands will be on your arms during your upper body workouts, research has shown that your chest will still get a growth response while doing pressing movements (and theoretically your back while doing pulling/rowing movements). Keep the bands on until you are done with the full workout, which shouldn’t take too long anyway since you are only doing 5 sets per exercise and resting less than 20 seconds between sets. You can also use this method when doing the “P” exercises of HSP Training, or when doing home workouts. BFR has also been shown to create hypertrophy even while doing brisk walks (up to 20 minutes), so you can also use it while doing cardio or walking your dog, to reap some minor hypertrophic benefits. As far as which bands to purchase, look online for anything in the $20-40 range, or less. CAFFEINE – the most popular and widely used drug in the world, the active ingredient in coffee and almost every pre-workout known to man. It works primarily by blocking adenosine receptors. Adenosine is a byproduct of the breakdown of ATP (the energy currency of the human body), and high adenosine levels signal the body that it is time to wind down and “take a break”. In short, adenosine makes you tired and fatigued. Caffeine blocks adenosine receptors without activating them, which prevents adenosine from activating its effects on the brain. The result, you feel invincible, full of energy, and alert, as excitatory neurotransmitters such as dopamine and glutamate can now run wild, without adenosine to inhibit them. This is why drinking energy drinks or pre-workouts loaded with caffeine give you such a rush of energy. It’s not that your fatigue mysteriously went away, but rather, adenosine receptors are now temporarily blocked, which is also why once the caffeine wears off you experience a massive crash, as all the once blocked adenosine molecules all rush to their now unoccupied receptors. Caffeine also increases testosterone, androgen receptor density, metabolic rate, fat loss, colon stimulation (good if constipated), dopamine receptors, cortisol (sadly), and lowers myostatin and appetite, which is why it is such a popular drug for both performance, muscle growth, and fat loss. Beware though, because as with all powerful stimulants, it doesn’t come without side effects if misused, which include desensitization after

6 chronic use, insulin resistance, and interference with sleep quality (it can stay in your body for several hours after ingestion, so avoid taking it hours before sleep). Caffeine is mainly found in obviously coffee, tea, energy drinks, and pre-workouts. The recommended dose for lifters is about 3-6mg/kg of body weight, and the average cup of coffee contains about 100mg (or 1% per gram of ground coffee). CALORIES – See “Total Daily Energy Expenditure’. CARB-CYCLING – Carb cycling is a time tested dieting strategy where you alternate between high and low carb days. It is best to reserve your low carb days for days on which you do not plan to train. Also, since the glycogen that will fuel your next workout mainly comes from what you ate the days prior, try to time your low carb days perfectly so that you do not run into a performance wall at the gym. Example, if you plan to train extremely hard tomorrow, try to eat sufficient carbs the night before, even if you didn’t train that day. Also, remember that the best time to eat carbs is right after a workout, since your muscles are extremely sensitive to glucose (due to glucose transporters like GLUT4 and GLUT12), and that is the window where glycogen replenishment occurs the fastest. CARDIO – Cardio is obviously good for your heart, but it can interfere with your muscle growth if done excessively and for prolonged periods of time. Excessive cardio will inhibit protein synthesis (via blunting mTOR and activating the AMPK enzyme), and elevate cortisol, which in turn increases myostatin, the muscle killer. Also, the body adapts very quickly to cardio, forcing you to either keep doing cardio in order to maintain your weight, or forcing you to increase the duration in order to see further progress (which obviously causes you to do more and more cardio over time, making the situation worse).Therefore, it is best to keep cardio sessions very short (20 minutes max), or to do more intense cardio sessions such as HIIT (high intensity interval training). HIIT is much shorter, much more intense, and has far more benefits than steady state cardio, with the only downside being the fact that it does interfere with your resistance training sessions. But since HIIT is so effective, you only need about 2-3 sessions a week, each lasting no more than 10 minutes, just to see great results. The best forms of HIIT are sprinting (hill sprints) and jump roping. CARNITINE – non-essential amino acid, found mainly in beef, and synthesized from the amino acids Lysine and Methionine. Very crucial in fat metabolism (helps shuttle fatty acids to the mitochondria, where they are effectively burned). Also shown to increase androgen receptor density at high doses. CELL SWELLING – Most commonly referred to as “the pump”. The tight feeling you get in your muscles after a few hard high repetition sets, due to your muscle cells being engorged with blood. People used to think that the pump was just a temporary “feel good/look good” phenomenon that had no contribution to hypertrophy, but research over the years has shown that this is simply not the case. The pump actually increases protein synthesis, lowers protein breakdown, and if intense enough (as in with blood flow restriction training), activates satellite cells through various pathways that include lactate, myostatin, ROS (reactive oxygen species) and the recruitment of neutrophils and macrophages (immune system/inflammation agents). In one study, the magnitude of your pump right after training was even shown to be one of the strongest predictors of future muscle growth. This is one of the several reasons why Nucleus OverloadTM is so effective, since your goal while performing it is to maximize cell swelling in a very short time window. CHOLESTEROL – Most heavily underestimate the importance of cholesterol in our bodies, mainly due to media fear mongering. Your body produces a ton of it daily, and for good reasons. It is needed for testosterone and vitamin D production, two of your body’s most important and anabolic hormones, and it is also needed to build the structure of your cell membranes. It also helps with vitamin and nutrient absorption, since it is needed to produce bile acids, which are crucial for fat digestion. It also has very high anabolic properties, with studies showing strong correlations between cholesterol intake (in the range of 800mg per day) and lean body mass. In short, just like every other thing in your body, balance is key. Too much is bad, and so is too little, and based on genetics, your level of inflammation, and your metabolic profile, what is high for one person might be too low for you. Consult with your doctor to find out

7 what levels are optimal for you, and where your LDL (low density lipoprotein, aka bad cholesterol) and HDL (high density lipoprotein, aka good cholesterol) levels should be. CLA – Conjugated linoleic acid. It is an Omega 6 fatty acid found mainly in animal protein sources (cows and sheep etc.), and is widely sold as a fat loss supplement. It helps with body composition by increasing fat breakdown, limiting fat storage, and has a minor effect on improving muscle mass. Dosage recommendations are usually around 3-5g per day. CREATINE – the most heavily studied supplement in the market. It has been proven to increase strength, lower myostatin, and increase muscle mass. It also works as an osmolyte, pulling water into the muscle cells. Dosage recommendations are usually a loading phase of up to 20g per day, followed by a maintenance phase of about 5g per day. Monohydrate is the cheapest and most basic version, and does its job quite well. Just like many other supplements, I don’t recommend it to beginners until they begin to peak and plateau in their muscle building journey. DAILY ROUTINE – This is a bit off topic, but is included due to subscriber requests. The Team3DAlpha Daily Routine is the #1 thing I attribute to all my success over the years. It is a checklist-based routine that I created to help conquer my own battles with depression, lack of motivation, lack of purpose, and lack of overall productivity. I created it when I realized that if I simply practiced one thing each day, every day, I would’ve have practiced that thing a whopping 365 things at the end of the year. Or if I learned just one new thing each day, it would amount me learning over 365 new things by the end of the year. It sounds so simple, yet it is the single most effective thing I’ve ever done. Simply wake up, and go through each item on the checklist in chronological order until your day is over. To create your own list, simply make a list of 5 categories, named: Motivation, Muscle, Money, Mind, and Mood. Then for each category, add 5 very short tasks that must be done that day to fulfill the purpose of that category. For example, under Motivation, make a list of 5 things that you should do every morning to maximize your motivation for the day (this should obviously be done in the morning, as soon as you wake up). For Muscle, make a list of 5 things that must be done each day to maximize your physique goals. Do the same for Money (5 things that will improve your financial situation), Mind (5 things that will increase your intellect), and end the day with Mood (5 things that reward you for a day well-fought, such as playing games, watching TV or spending time with friends or family). This gives you a total of 25 very brief things you must do each day to reach your full potential, one day at a time. You will wake up each day with purpose, knowing what to do and how to make best use of your time. Remember to keep each task very short so that you don’t overwhelm yourself at first. I’ve included a template at the end of the book. DHT – Dihydrotestosterone. Comes as a result of Testosterone’s conversion (via the 5-alpha reductase enzyme). It has a much higher affinity for the androgen receptor than Testosterone, but is less anabolic due to its quick breakdown by an enzyme as soon as it enters muscle tissue. Apart from that, it has very high androgenic effects since it is not as easily broken down in other tissues (hair, neurons, skin etc.), and is notorious for increasing force production in its users. It also doesn’t convert to estrogen, which is a plus in some regards. Read “Testosterone” and “Steroids” for more details. DIGESTION – None of the foods you eat matter if your body can’t absorb them. This is where digestion comes in. Contrary to what most people think, not everything that enters your mouth makes it to your body’s tissues. Your body can only absorb what it breaks down, and for people who exercise strenuously and must therefore eat plenty of food, this becomes even more important. The best ways to improve digestion revolve around doing the basics: Chew your food well, drink a ton of water (gastric juice is 99% water), supplement with protein digesting enzymes (protease such as bromelain or papain) and apple cider vinegar (to help increase stomach acidity), eat plenty of fiber, and take care of your gut flora (using certain probiotics). Also listen to your body, as it will “tell” you if you are experiencing digestive issues. Symptoms include bloating, excessive farting, constipation, and inflammation. DOPAMINE – Neurotransmitter (messenger) responsible for motivation and the pursuit of pleasure. Converts into Adrenaline (the #1 fat burner in the human body). It is synthesized from the amino acid

8 Tyrosine. Increase it by setting and achieving goals, eating enough protein, listening to music, training, and pretty much living a “hunter/conqueror” lifestyle. If your motivation is low, chances are your dopamine levels or receptors are too low. DROPSETS – A training technique in which a set is take close to failure, the weight immediately reduced, and the set continued (subsets) with almost no rest in between each subset. These produce the same (and in some cases more) growth as traditional “straight sets”, with up to 60% less time. For example a triple dropset is the equivalent of 3 traditional straight sets, but can be completed in a minute or less. ECCENTRICS, NEGATIVES, WEIGHTED STRETCH – Eccentrics are also called “negatives”. That is the lowering part of each contraction (i.e.: lowering the weight during barbell curls). You are 20% stronger in this phase, and they are the most anabolic type of contractions by far. They also cause the most muscle damage, so the key is to use them carefully. Some of their benefits include increasing muscle activation and fiber recruitment, and amplifying the local and systemic IGF-1 release from training (as well as lowering Myostatin). They also lower the amount of volume you need to perform to build muscle by half (it takes twice the amount of concentric-only sets to obtain the same growth as one concentric/eccentric set). Weighted stretching causes substantial hypertrophy by the same mechanisms, inspired by the famous avian study by Jose Antonio years ago. In case you’re unfamiliar, a bird’s wings were stretched under load for several days, and such an extreme protocol led to an over 300% increase in muscle size, as well as hyperplasia. Now of course, the same “300%” results won’t apply to humans, but substantial hypertrophy has been seen when human muscles were placed under heavy weighted stretch. Some studies even showed increased hypertrophy when passive stretching was applied in between sets. All the benefits of Eccentric training and weighted stretching are fully utilized by the “S” part of HSP Training TM . ECDYSTERONE – Also called 20-Hydroxyecdysone, belongs to the family of ecdysteroids (the slightly most potent form is called Turkesterone, followed by Cyasterone and then the more popular Ecdysterone). It is an extremely anabolic compound formed from cholesterol, mainly used by molting insects (example when caterpillars turn into butterflies), but it has powerful anabolic and adaptogenic effects on humans as well. In fact recent studies have shown that it is so anabolic that it should be added to the list of anti-doping agents. It works mainly via the estrogen beta receptor (see Estrogen for more details) as opposed to the Ecdysone receptor in insects, and boosts protein synthesis by activating the AKT (upstream of mTOR) pathway and increasing calcium influx into the muscle. It also has other effects on recovery, insulin sensitivity, neural function, and blood circulation (via VEGF). Doses at around 12 to 50 mg a day seem to be enough to produce remarkable results, contrary to the popular belief that you need 5 mg/kg (that’s the dosage for rodents, not humans). Be careful purchasing it from companies though, since many are extremely dishonest about the Ecdysterone content in their products. I recommend getting it from food instead. The most practical foods highest in it are quinoa (about 8 mg per dry ounce) and spinach (about 3mg per dry ounce). A harder to find herb called Ajuga Turkestanica has a whopping 140 mg per dry ounce, and Suma root has about 175 mg per ounce. ESTROGEN – the primary “female” hormone, although males have it in smaller amounts since it is converted from Testosterone via the enzyme aromatase. Too much of it leads to low Testosterone (through negative feedback loop), excess water retention, and increased body fat, while too little of it leads to low sex drive, recovery issues, joint issues, and poor activation of satellite cells. Yes, contrary to popular belief, Estrogen does have anabolic properties, and it is one of the reasons why women recover from high volume & high frequency training so much faster than men. In fact, Ecdysterone, an insect molting hormone mainly found in plants (high quantities are found in quinoa and spinach), exerts its extremely anabolic effects on human muscle via the estrogen beta receptor. So don’t be afraid of Estrogen, unless it is obviously so high that its fat storing and water retention effects outweigh its anabolic and recovery benefits. The #1 way to lower estrogen, apart from diet (cruciferous vegetables) is to simply lower body fat, since body fat is the primary headquarters of the aromatase enzyme. FAT LOSS – fat is simply a molecule comprised of a glycerol backbone and 3 fatty acid chains. When attempting to lose/burn fat, your goal is to simply break apart those molecules (through an enzyme called

9 Hormone Sensitive Lipase or HSL), so that the fatty acids can be shuttled to the muscle, to be burned (in the mitochondria) for energy. The by-product of this reaction will mostly be carbon dioxide (exhaling) and water (sweating). What kickstarts this whole process? A demand for energy. That can come from a caloric deficit, intense exercise, or via hormone stimulation. Testosterone, Growth hormone, Glucagon, and the neurotransmitter adrenaline (epinephrine) are all potent activators of HSL. Although being in a caloric deficit through eating less is the easiest way to lose fat, I recommend focusing more on increasing energy expenditure instead, because you can only cut your calories so low before you run into hormonal or vitamin/mineral deficiency issues. Also, remember that protein has a very high thermic effect of food, so eating a very high protein diet will allow you to burn fat and maintain lean mass while eating way more calories than you would otherwise be able to eat on a lower protein diet. This is important because when losing weight, you want to make sure the majority of that weight loss comes from fat instead of just muscle, and if you cut your calories too low, you can be certain that the majority of your weight loss will be hard-earned muscle. Refer to “Total Daily Energy Expenditure” for more detail on fat loss. FORCE-VELOCITY RELATIONSHIP – the amount of force a muscle can produce and the speed of the muscle contraction are inversely related. So the slower a muscle contracts under load, the more actinmyosin bridges are formed, and the more force it produces. This is why heavy weights build muscle (you can’t move the weight fast even if you want to), and also why high reps to failure do the same (your bar speed slows down as you approach failure). FAILURE – training to a point where you can no longer move the weight with proper form. If training with light to moderate loads, it is imperative that you approach failure, or maximal muscle recruitment and fatigue will not be attained. The downside is that training to failure too often impedes recovery, so the key is to get as close to failure as possible without really touching it. Ideally with 1-3 reps left in the tank.

FASTING – Fasting simply refers to restricting food for a certain period of time. With intermittent fasting, food is restricted for usually 16 hours, with a 8 hour eating window. Some fast for an entire day and simply eat one meal (OMAD). Fasting does have benefits, from improved brain function and the formation of new brain cells (neurogenesis), to improved insulin sensitivity, cell renewal, and fat mobilization. It also helps lower caloric intake for those with appetite and leptin resistance issues, since it helps them eat less. As far as muscle growth goes, most of the anabolic hormones released during fasting (Growth hormone for instance) are mainly to help prevent muscle breakdown, not to maximize protein synthesis. So although I recommend fasting here and there, once or twice a week for most people is more than enough to reap the benefits. The reason it is not optimal for maximum muscle growth is two-fold: first, protein synthesis is maximized with at least 3-5 meals a day, due to the nature of amino acid release and the subsequent spikes in muscle protein synthesis, and second, due to fasting’s effects on basic metabolic rate (BMR). Prolonged fasting eventually lowers your metabolic rate, in order to make your body more efficient, but that is one of the last things you want when your goal is to build muscle long-term, since the lower your BMR, the easier it is for you to accidentally eat at a surplus and therefore gain fat. The higher your BMR, the more food you can get away with while still maintaining a lean or muscular physique. One technique I often recommend, which works exceptionally well, is simply having a one day 24 hour fast (water only) each week. Another technique (if the goal is to keep weekly macros and calories the same) is to fast for 24 hours while doubling calories the day before or after. This one works great for those who want to have a huge cheat day without ruining their measurements at the end of the week. So in short, fasting is great, it offers a ton of benefits, but you want to use it sparingly to avoid long-term reductions in metabolic rate. FREQUENCY – the amount of times you train a muscle. As long as the muscle is not heavily damaged, it is best to train it as often as possible, from at least 3 times a week to at most 6-7 times. This will always result in faster muscle growth and optimal stimulation of anabolic growth factors, as long as recovery is also optimized to match this added stress.

10 GHRELIN – it is the hunger hormone. When blood sugar is low, your stomach, small intestine and pancreas release ghrelin, which travels to your brain in order to stimulate appetite. In short, it makes you hungry. GLUCAGON – it is the opposite of insulin. Whereas insulin increases fat and glucose storage when blood glucose is high, glucagon does the reverse. It breaks down fat and glycogen when blood sugar is low, in order to increase blood glucose availability (for energy). GLYCOGEN – glucose stored inside your muscles is referred to as glycogen. Your muscles can store at least 400g of glycogen, while your liver can only store about 100g. The liver’s source of glycogen is mainly to fuel your brain, while your muscle’s source of glycogen is mainly to fuel intense high volume workouts or HIIT cardio. The fastest way to replenish your glycogen is to eat high glycemic carbs (fast digesting) immediately after training, because that’s when your muscles are the most sensitive to glucose (independent of insulin, thanks to glucose transporters). Also, keep in mind that high volume workouts or pump oriented workouts such as BFR increase your glycogen storage capacity, which is always a bonus. GROWTH HORMONE – as its name suggest, it is the hormone of growth. It is responsible for height during child growth, and the formation of bone and other tissues even into adulthood. It increases IGF-1 production in liver and muscle tissue, giving it most of its anabolic effects. It also directly increases the fusion of myoblasts (activated and differentiated satellite cells) into muscle cells, causing them to increase in size. It is also one of the most powerful “anti-fat” hormones in the body. It does so by increasing fat breakdown, inhibiting fat storage, and even turning “would-be fat” stem cells from the fat cell lineage into the bone cell lineage. It is increased via eating a high protein diet (arginine increases it), fasting occasionally, sleeping, losing belly fat, and most importantly by performing high intensity activities such as resistance training with short rest periods or performing HIIT such as sprinting and jump roping. HENNEMAN SIZE PRINCIPLE – Muscle fibers are recruited from low threshold to high threshold, from slow twitch to fast twitch, depending on how heavy the load is or how fatigued the slow twitch muscles are. This is another reason why you can’t recruit fast twitch muscles using higher reps with moderate to light weights. The slow twitch fibers eventually fatigue, forcing the fast twitch fibers to take over. HYPERPLASIA – Hypertrophy is the increase in size of muscle fibers, whereas hyperplasia is the increase in NUMBER of muscle fibers. It can happen in one or two ways, either through fiber splitting as a result of injury or extensive muscle damage, or when satellite cells fuse and donate their nuclei to an already existing muscle fiber and grow adjacent to it (the goal of Nucleus Overload). A combination of both hypertrophy and hyperplasia is paramount to maximize your natural genetic muscular potential. INSULIN – it is one of the most anabolic hormones in the human body. Its role is to increase the absorption of amino acids and glucose by the body’s cells. Unfortunately, it also increases fat cells, not just muscle. The higher your blood glucose mainly in response to a high glycemic (fast digesting) meal, the higher your insulin levels (in order to shuttle glucose away from the blood and into the cells). Too much upregulation of insulin eventually leads to insulin resistance, where your body is no longer sensitive to the glucose shuttling effects of insulin. In short, insulin knocks on the door of your cells, asking them to absorb the glucose from the bloodstream, but the cells refuse to respond. This leads to a buildup of glucose in the blood, causing severe damage to your body’s cells over time. This excess glucose buildup forces your pancreas to release even more insulin, making the insulin resistance even worse, and ultimately leading to type 2 Diabetes. The best way to increase insulin sensitivity is through exercise, primarily resistance training. Doing so increases the activation of glucose transporters inside your muscle cells, which causes them to rise to the surface of the cell and help absorb blood glucose (even in the absence of insulin). The more glucose they absorb, the less glucose in your bloodstream, and therefore the less insulin your body has to release, which is critical in preventing or ameliorating insulin resistance. Insulin is critical both for glycogen synthesis (you need glucose to make glycogen) and protein synthesis (you need amino acids to make proteins), so it is imperative that you keep insulin sensitivity high. If you

11 have too much body fat around your midsection, or your blood glucose takes far too long to go back to normal after a meal, chances are you may be insulin resistant. IGF-1 – stands for Insulin like growth factor 1. It activates satellite cells, increases protein synthesis (via the mTOR pathway), increases strength, bone density, glycogen storage, and represses Myostatin. It also increases Androgen Receptor activity, making your Testosterone more efficient. It is produced by the liver in response to HGH (Human Growth Hormone), and in muscles in response to hard muscle contractions. Increase it via training frequently and consuming enough protein. It’s strongest form, Mechano Growth Factor (produced in muscle) only lasts 12-24 hours at most, so it is another reason why you must train frequently. Under acidic conditions, such as when lactic acid is present during training, it can convert to IGF-1 DES(1-3), which is 10 times more powerful, since it binds stronger to the IGF-1 receptor, and weaker to IGFBP-3 (a member of binding proteins which make IGF-1 inactive). KAATSU – See “Blood flow restriction training”. LEPTIN – The master hormone in charge of your metabolism. It is mainly found in fat cells. When high, it tells your brain to stop eating, and then increases your metabolism (as well as your anabolic hormones). When low, it tells your brain to start eating, and decreases your metabolism in order to conserve energy. Ironically, obese people tend to have extremely high levels of Leptin (which should make them stop eating), but just like insulin resistance, they also develop leptin resistance. It is a condition where your brain no longer responds to Leptin’s signal (to stop eating), causing the person to continue to eat despite being full. All of the hacks that fix insulin resistance also tend to fix leptin resistance, so refer to “Insulin” for more details. LIVER – One of your body’s most important yet underrated organs by a long shot. There is a reason it is not only the heaviest, but also the second most metabolically active organ. It manufactures anabolic peptides (such as IGF-1) and hormone precursors (such as cholesterol), stores vitamins and minerals, detoxifies your body of toxins, aids with digestion (by producing bile), shuttles glucose to the brain, exports amino acids to your gut, synthesizes amino acids, and more. So as someone who wishes to not only put on muscle but remain healthy, avoid things that stress your liver at all costs (such as alcohol and drugs). MACROS – Short for “macronutrients”, it generally refers to the big 3 (Protein, Carbs, Fat). In order to build muscle (and burn fat), it is not enough to manipulate calories, you must also optimize macros. Manipulating calories will lead to weight gain or weight loss, but manipulating macros will decide where most of that weight will come from, whether lean muscle or fat. My protein recommendations are always high, at least 1g per pound of body weight, or 1.5g per pound of lean body weight if very obese. My top 5 recommended protein sources are milk, eggs, beef, fish, and whey protein (and beans for vegans). Fat, which gets a bad reputation since it is so calorie dense (double that of protein and carbs, at 9 kcal per g), has the lowest thermic effect of food, and is the easiest to store as body fat, I recommend around 0.25 to 0.5g per pound of body weight, or 15-30% of calories, with 20% being a good starting point. If your testosterone levels are critically low, you might want to shift to the higher end, and in some cases even more, since fat intake has the highest correlation with testosterone out of all the other macro nutrients. This makes perfect sense, since testosterone and Vitamin D (another powerful hormone) are all synthesized from cholesterol. Also, optimal fat intake is needed for absorption of key fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, E and K. Extremely low fat intake is one of the reasons why bodybuilders who diet too hard for shows suffer from a host of bodily, mental and hormonal issues. So don’t neglect your healthy fats. The top 5 sources of fat in my opinion are egg yokes, olive oil, butter, nuts, and any omega-3 source such as fatty fish (salmon) or flaxseeds. Lastly, carbs are needed for maximum performance, strength, and energy in the gym. Since glucose is the preferred energy source for the brain, sufficient carb intake is often needed to maintain focus for most people. But since the brain can also make use of ketones (produced by the liver from the breakdown of fats) during periods of fasting or extremely low carb intake, and the body can break down protein to form glucose (gluconeogenesis), carbs are considered nonessential (unlike protein and essential healthy fats), meaning you don’t need them to survive, but you do

12 need them for optimal performance. Once you have figured out your target calories, protein, and fat intake, simply take the remaining calories and divide them by 4 to calculate your carb intake. More details on the calculations are found later in the book (Macro guide). My top 5 recommended carb sources are beans, oatmeal, potatoes, quinoa, and rice. For fruits (fructose), I recommend vitamin C and potassium loaded fruits such as oranges, pineapple, papaya, kiwi, and blueberries. As far as fiber goes, the recommended amount is about 14g for every 1000 calories eaten, or about ~30g a day for most people. Fiber is needed for digestive health and appetite control, so do not neglect it. My top 5 recommended fiber sources are spinach (the ultimate vegetable), kale (the second ultimate), broccoli, cabbage, and beans. MAGNESIUM – one of the most important minerals for people looking to maximize muscle growth. It has over half a thousand functions in the body, all related to muscle activity, energy metabolism, protein synthesis, testosterone, SHBG (lowering it), vitamin D synthesis, thyroid (T3) function, mood (serotonin), motivation (dopamine), insulin sensitivity, reducing inflammation, and more. Best sources of magnesium are spinach, pumpkin seeds, nuts, and bran. The recommended dosage for lifters is at least 500-1000mg per day, and almost everyone I know is deficient in it. MGF – Refer to IGF-1. It stands for Mechano Growth Factor. It is a more potent form of IGF-1 produced only in muscle cells in response to hard contractions (especially eccentrics). Potent activator of satellite cells and protein synthesis. Very short duration, so must be produced frequently (by training more often). MOTOR UNIT – A neuron (brain cell) and the muscle fibers it “commands”. The heavier the weight (or the more fatigued the muscle), the more motor units are recruited and therefore the more muscle fibers are activated and placed under load. These high threshold motor units command the most muscle fibers and are therefore critical for putting on size. MTOR – The mammalian target of Rapamycin. Main enzyme responsible for RNA translation and the synthesis of proteins using the amino acids from your diet. It does so by activating your ribosomes (where protein synthesis takes place). Train too much without breaks and it becomes desensitized to training. Take breaks (at least 1-2 weeks) and it regains its sensitivity. mTOR is activated by almost all of the anabolic hormones and peptides, and by the amino acid Leucine. MUSCLE DAMAGE - Muscle damage has its place in hypertrophy and hyperplasia, since it helps increase satellite cell activation and the fusion of myoblasts (helping regenerate the muscle and increasing its myonuclear domain), but too much damage and you actually slow down muscle growth, since protein synthesis isn’t maximized until muscle damage has first been repaired (a process which can take several days). Also, the more damage you cause, the less high threshold motor units you can recruit, the less you can train, and therefore the less weekly volume you can accumulate. So the goal is to use muscle damage in a smart and strategic way, in order to reap the satellite cell activation benefits (which can also be attained through BFR and cell swelling), without shooting yourself in the foot. In fact, BFR actually causes the least amount of muscle damage, yet offers many of the same satellite cell activation benefits, which is another reason why there is no need to go overboard with the damage while training. The best way to cause muscle damage is through eccentrics and weighted stretching, which is where the “S” part of HSP TrainingTM comes in. MYONUCLEAR DOMAIN LIMIT/THEORY – Refer to “satellite cells”. MYOSTATIN – the #1 enemy of muscle growth, along with Activin A. It binds to the Activin Type 2 receptor and stops satellite cell activity and increases protein breakdown. It also blunts mTOR, severely restricting protein synthesis. Simply put, its goal is to stop you from getting too muscular. It is lowered by IGF-1, follistatin (binds to it and makes it inactive), Testosterone, Growth hormone, lactic acid, and a few other compounds such as Epicatechin (found in dark chocolate). It is increased by cortisol. Training lowers it but only for up to 12-24hours, which is why training frequently is so important. NEGATIVES – refer to “Eccentrics”.

13 NITRIC OXIDE – It is a compound that occurs naturally in the body (synthesized from the amino acid arginine). It relaxes and helps widen blood vessels, leading to increased blood flow and oxygen delivery to tissues. This is why it is so popular in “pump” supplements (mostly comprised of arginine and citrulline) and is even used to help treat erectile disfunction. It also has positive effects on satellite cell activation, insulin sensitivity and performance. The best way to increase nitric oxide levels in the body is through consumption of nitrates (found in most vegetables such as spinach, celery and lettuce), arginine (at least 5g), citrulline (up to 8g per day), and antioxidants (to prevent its breakdown in the blood since it is very unstable and short-lived). NUCLEUS OVERLOAD – Overworking a muscle several times a week leads to an increase in several of the factors explained in this section (Androgen receptors, IGF-1, MGF, satellite cell activity, less Myostatin etc.). This results in an increase in satellite cell content, which primes the muscle for faster growth in the future. This is the reason why ballerinas and soccer players have big calves, sprinters and cyclists have huge quads, Olympic lifters, strongmen competitors, powerlifters and sulfur miners have big traps, prisoners and those who do pushups every day have big chests, swimmers have big lats, mechanics have big forearms, boxers have big shoulders, and gymnasts have huge arms (and deltoids). It is also why people who accidentally “overworked” a muscle in their teens, found that muscle to be extremely responsive to training when they began bodybuilding. The “muscle memory” effect coupled with additional effortless growth even when the former size was regained. Most attributed this to “genetics” until I explained the process on YouTube, and a ton of light bulbs went off. The stories I received were endless. Former soccer players who couldn’t understand why their legs grew so fast when they started bodybuilding, or people who used to do pushups everyday as teens who couldn’t understand why their chests grew so fast and with almost no effort once they started training. The stories were endless. It is a mechanism I observed my entire life but could never understand until I read several studies back in 2012. Prior to that, all I had was my experience and those case studies to back up my claims, and I was heavily ridiculed by the “know it all” imbeciles of the fitness community. But since then a lot more research has come out to support my “theory”, and it has spread like wildfire. To properly apply N.O, train a muscle 5-7 times a week (you can pick multiple muscles if your recovery management is optimal), up to twice a day, ideally with lighter weights (40-60% of your 1RM) and higher repetitions (15-20 reps close to failure), short rest periods (