What's holding you back from making the transformation that you want to make is overanalyzing, overcomplicating, and trying to do everything the best way possible.

It’s just how we’re wired these days. We’re so plugged in to what everyone else is doing that we can’t help but compare ourselves to everyone else. Everything we pick up we have to be perfect, and to be perfect we think there’s a perfect way to do everything.

For as long as I can remember I’ve been obsessed with efficiency. For me, the simplest, most direct solution is the right one to take in any situation.

That doesn’t mean jump to conclusions or get stuck in old ways. It just means to get things right and get there quickly.

• Sometimes there’s something to be said for the way things have worked for a long time.
• Sometimes we learn new ways to do things better.

But ultimately the most direct solution is the one I want to go with, and with fitness it’s no different.

So we have a tendency to overanalyze. Online, you have the bro-science crowd and the science based crowd. The answer to most questions is usually somewhere in the middle.

Now, I like to keep up with this stuff because I’m a nerd, but you don’t have to.

I finally broke out of a plateau when I stopped looking for new answers and changing up my training every week because of it.

I decided to simplify everything, build myself a protocol, and stick to it. The result was actual progress.

“The next thing”

The internet is an amazing tool, but it obviously has it’s drawbacks, especially when it comes to fitness.

Because of the absurd amount of information out there, we’ve adapted to always look for “the next thing.”

This has completely messed up our mentalities about what it takes to make progress. Which is why I’m here preaching about simplicity.

We think that there’s always a new, better way to do things because of the information being poured down our throats, when in reality the way to make progress is through simplicity.

Find what works, do it over and over, do it better and better, and continue on.

Our minds now work at the same pace the world does. We see someone jacked we want to get jacked. We someone flexible we want to change things up and train for flexibility. And so on.

So instead of that, let’s just run through what it takes to get into the shape you want to be in. To put on muscle. To shred down. To get that movie star physique — without the steroids.

Calories in, calories out

For as far as we’re concerned, we’re going to say that we treat all calories the same, even if I don’t fully believe that.

You can’t tell me that my body is going to handle a 100 calorie apple the same way as 100 calories of swedish fish. But we’ll talk about that another day, since I’m not going to give you much of an option here anyway.

Getting into great shape isn’t supposed to be easy, that’s why if you look around nobody you see is in great shape.

Your diet is where the discipline comes in. Going to the gym is easy.

• It’s fun.
• You can train in different ways.
• After a few minutes your endorphins get going.
• You enjoy the process after not too long.

The point here is simplicity, and that means to clean up your diet in a way that means you can’t really think too much about what you’re eating.

Just think as humans, what are we meant to eat?

• Meat
• Fish
• Fruits and vegetables
• Dairy
• Honey is good
• Rice and maybe some pasta or bread

When I think simplicity, I definitely don’t think counting calories. I think “eat when hungry, don’t overeat, don’t eat processed bs.”

That’s all I want you to do.

• Clean it up.
• Cook your own meals.
• Eat the things you know you’re supposed to eat
• Don’t eat the things you know you shouldn’t
• Listen to your body, don’t overeat
• Be disciplined. Yes it’s hard. But that’s what gets you in shape.

Build muscle, lose fat

If you’re a beginner, you have it good.

There’s a huge debate about if you can put on muscle while losing fat at the same time, and if you’re a beginner, you can.

People tend to forget that we care about the percentage, not the literal amount of fat that we have on us.

If you’re new to lifting, especially if you’re in your teens or twenties, your body is primed to put on muscle. You can pretty much just look at some weights and you’ll be jacked in no time.

So if you’re a beginner eating in a slight caloric surplus and your body is putting on muscle like crazy while only adding a bit of fat at the same time, you’re going to get jacked and lean at the same time — because it’s a percentage.

Now not all of us are beginners so it’s not so easy. There’s still an effect of this, but it works the other way.

If you have some muscle and you’ve gotten past your newbie gains you’re going to have to suck it up and go on a cut, but just because you’re on a cut doesn’t mean you’re going to lose all of the progress you’ve made.

The foods we talked about are loaded with just about everything you need. You have your macros but also all of the micronutrients your body needs.

• Keep eating the right things
• Up the cardio
• Continue to train hard
• Stay a little hungry

And in the end you’ll be able to cut without losing the strength and muscle gains that you’ve already made.

Exercise

To be honest there’s a million things you can do, and for me this is where I have a problem with simplicity.

My diet has been the same for a while and I’m fine with it, but when it comes to training I try to switch things up too much and have to remind myself to stick to one thing for a while.

The good news is that there’s a lot of variability in how you can train within the different types of exercise.

But in the end just stick to having lifting and cardio in your routine.

What that looks like can change from person to person, but when you’re trying to get into the best shape of your life, those are the things that are going to get you there. That’s how you build muscle and lose fat, just adjust the amount of each based on what you’re trying to do.

When it comes to lifting weights just stick to the things that have worked forever. There are plans all over the internet. If you want a free one from me just join the email list and you’ll get one there.

Just focus on compound lifts and do a few isolation exercises for the parts that are missing, and you’ll be good to go.

When it comes to cardio, keep it fun. Some people like running, I like to box, people like to play a sport, and there’s HIIT classes.

Whatever gets you to get in the zone and burns a bunch of calories is what you want to do.

You don’t just have to apply this to fitness, I apply this to everything. I often just grab a garbage bag and get rid of stuff or clothes that I have in the apartment to keep myself living simply.

I want to get as far away from this life of constant distraction and keeping up with everything as I can.

I just want to live simply, and fitness is no different.

In a world that’s constantly looking for improvements and new solutions, there’s something to be said for the things that have just worked forever, and when it comes to diet and exercise, we’ve had the basics figured out for a while.

Simplify your diet so you don’t have to worry about overeating and indulging on the bad stuff, and simplify your workouts so that they’re easy to follow and your cardio is just fun to do.

Stick to that forever, and you’ll be in great shape. Promise.

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