12 Health & Fitness Mistakes You Don'T Know You'Re Making: Michael Matthews

12 HEALTH
& FITNESS
MISTAKES YOU
DON’T KNOW
YOU’RE MAKING
Michael Matthews
Copyright © 2013 Oculus Publishers, Inc.
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This book is a general educational health-related information product and is intended for
healthy adults, age 18 and over.
This book is solely for information and educational purposes and is not medical advice.
Please consult a medical or health professional before you begin any exercise, nutrition, or
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There may be risks associated with participating in activities or using products mentioned in
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Specific results mentioned in this book should be considered extraordinary and there are no
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Published by: Oculus Publishers, Inc.
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Visit the author’s website:
www.muscleforlife.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hi,
I’m Mike and I’ve been training for nearly a decade now.
I believe that every person can achieve the body of his or her dreams,
and I work hard to give everyone that chance by providing workable, proven
advice grounded in science, not a desire to sell phony magazines, workout
products, or supplements.
Through my work, I’ve helped thousands of people achieve their health
and fitness goals, and I share everything I know in my books.
So if you’re looking to get in shape and look great, then I think I can
help you. I hope you enjoy my books and I’d love to hear from you at my site,
www.muscleforlife.com.
Sincerely,
Mike
CONTENTS
YOU HAVE BEEN LIED TO, AND IT’S TIME TO LEARN THE
TRUTH 1
The health and fitness industry is notorious for scams, fallacies,
and pseudo-science.
THE WAR AGAINST BS AND BROSCIENCE 3
Learn about the biggest lie factories in the industry, and how to
inoculate yourself.
12 HEALTH & FITNESS MISTAKES YOU DON’T KNOW
YOU’RE MAKING
Myth #1: I can’t build muscle/lose weight because I have bad
genetics 5
Myth #2: You have to work your abs more to get a six-pack 7
Myth #3: Lifting light weights for many reps gets you toned 11
Myth #4: Women should train differently than men 13

Myth #5: You don’t have to lift weights if you just want to be
healthy and fit 17
Myth #6: When doing cardio, you want to get your heart
rate into the “fat burning zone” 19
Myth #7: Fasting puts your body into “starvation mode” 21

Myth #8: If you eat a lot of carbs, you will always be fat 25
Myth #9: Eat many small meals per day to stoke the
metabolism and control hunger 31
Myth #10: You can’t drink alcohol if you want to look good 35
Myth #11: Don’t eat at night if you want to lose weight 39
Myth #12: I’m overweight because I have a slow metabolism 41
38 MORE DISTASTEROUS HEALTH & FITNESS MYTHS THAT
KEEP PEOPLE FAT, WEAK, AND UNHEALTHY? 43
Here’s what most people will never know about burning fat,
building muscle, and staying healthy.
BONUS REPORT 45
Muscle Meals: 15 Recipes for Building Muscle, Getting Lean, and
Staying Healthy
If you hate dieting and wish you could eat tasty, nutritious food
and still build muscle or lose weight, then you want to read this
special report.
WOULD YOU DO ME A FAVOR? 47
You’re awesome for buying my book, and I have a small favor to
ask...
ALSO BY MICHAEL MATTHEWS 48
More practical health and fitness advice to help you get into the
best shape of your life.
REFERENCES 51
YOU HAVE BEEN LIED TO, AND
IT’S TIME TO LEARN THE TRUTH
THIS BOOK COVERS SOME OF THE THINGS I wish had known when
I started training nearly a decade ago—back when I was full of wrong ideas.
I thought that my genetics weren’t good enough, that it took hours and
hours of grueling cardio to lose weight, that I was a hardgainer, that a re-
ally sick pump was the key to muscle growth, that I shouldn’t eat at night if
I didn’t want to get fat, and many other fallacies that were foisted upon me
by workout magazines and trainers (many of whom get their information
from magazines).
Like many people, I would hit the gym regularly only to see minor im-
provements that came far too slowly. Achieving my ideal physique seemed
impossible.
This frustrating rut can lead to quitting, or turning to unhealthy diets or
steroids and other drugs that can seriously harm your health. Fortunately,
I chose the path of better education, and it has since helped me transform
the way I eat and train, and as a result, transform my entire physique. I then
started writing books to help others do the same.
The fact is—and this is probably the biggest lesson I’ve learned over the
last ten years—building a great body just isn’t that complicated. It’s like good
sex—sure, it requires effort, but the principles are few and simple, and if you
stick to them, you get the job done.
Here’s what it boils down to: If you’re willing to exercise for 30–45 min-
utes per day, 3–5 times per week, and follow a sensible eating plan, you can
have a great body that you’re proud of. And if you’re not already a seasoned
2 12 HEALTH & FITNESS MISTAKES YOU DON’T KNOW YOU’RE MAKING
lifter, you can easily gain 10–15 pounds in your first 10–12 weeks of train-
ing—a pretty dramatic change. If you’re looking to lose weight, you can lose
the same amount, or more, in the same period.
In this book I’m going to address a dozen myths and bogus claims in a
scientific and straightforward manner. I’m not going to bother with a bunch
of pictures or fluff material because you can get more than your fill of that
in other fitness books and on various websites. I’m going to give you the
straight facts and help you approach your training and nutrition in a smart-
er way. You don’t necessarily have to read this book in order. Feel free to
scan the Table of Contents and jump to whatever sparks your interest most.
By the end of this book, you’re going to understand things about your
body and the physiology of weight loss and muscle growth that most people
will never know. And you’re going to be able to put what you learn into
practice to make achieving your ideal body easier, faster, and more enjoy-
able than ever before.
Before we begin with the myth busting, however, I want to talk about
the lie factories that spawn many of these bunk fallacies and how you can
avoid the many more that are sure to come. So let’s get to it.

THE WAR AGAINST
BS AND BROSCIENCE
A COUPLE DECADES AGO, THERE wasn’t enough information on

working out.
These days, with the internet and racks full of glossed-up magazines
featuring chemically enhanced athletes, the workout information market is
like a mountainous garbage dump. Somewhere in the muck are the basic,
workable truths—the stuff you’re actually looking for—but the useful info is
greatly out-numbered by the worthless crap.
If you hit the internet and start participating in health and fitness
forums, you’re entering a land ruled by broscience and idiocy, where it’s
almost impossible to sort out what’s true from what’s not.
“What’s broscience?” you ask. Broscience is the predominant brand of
reasoning used by amateur bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts where the
anecdotal stories of people who really have no idea what’s going on inside
their bodies takes precedence over credible scientific research. Just because
a guy is big thanks to steroids or a woman is thin thanks to starvation diets
that have wrecked her metabolism doesn’t mean these people have good
advice for you.
A million bad pieces of advice fall under the heading of broscience. You
should do high reps and low weight to tone your muscles—BZZZT. Eating
too many carbs will make you fat—BZZZT. Deadlifts are bad for your
back—BZZZT. Women shouldn’t lift weights because they’ll get bulky—
BZZZT. Wrong, wrong, wrong, bro.
And what about the magazines? Here’s a fun fact that you probably didn’t
know: MuscleMag, IronMan, Flex, Muscular Development, Muscle & Fitness,

Muscle Media, and the rest of the mainstream bodybuilding magazines are
owned by supplement companies and are used simply as mouthpieces for
their products. Yup. MuscleMag is controlled by MuscleTech; IronMan is
controlled by MuscleLink; Muscular Development is Twinlab’s shill piece;
Muscle & Fitness and Flex are owned by Joe Weider, and are thus promotion
catalogues for his companies, such as Weider, Metaform, and MuscleTribe;
and MuscleMedia is the EAS cheerleader.
The primary goal of these magazines is to pimp supplements for the
companies controlling them, and they work damn well. The magazines push
products in various ways. They have pretty advertisements all over the place,
they regularly run “advertorials” (advertisements disguised as informative
articles), and they balance the sales pitches with some articles that actually
provide workout and nutrition advice (which also, in many cases, end with
product recommendations of some kind).
So, this is the first blow that magazines deal to you: They give you a
lot of “advice” that is geared first and foremost to selling you products, not
helping you achieve your goals.
The supplement companies know that if they can keep getting these
magazines into people’s hands, they will keep selling products. So, how do
they ensure that you will keep buying? By coming up with a constant flow of
new advice and ideas, of course.
And this is the second, probably more harmful, blow: They inundate you
with all kinds of false ideas about what it takes to get into great shape. If they
told the simple truth every month, they would have maybe twenty articles
that they could re-print over and over. Instead, they get quite creative with
all kinds of sophisticated (but useless) workout routines, tricks, and diets
(that include certain supplements to really MAXIMIZE the effectiveness,
of course).
The bottom line is that you can’t trust these magazines. They’re nothing
more than shiny lobbyists for the supplement companies.
Alright, now that we have all that out of the way, let’s have some fun.
MYTH #1:
I CAN’T BUILD MUSCLE/LOSE WEIGHT

BECAUSE I HAVE BAD GENETICS
THIS ONE GETS TOSSED AROUND a lot. A Genetics are a favorite scape-
goat for people who can’t build enough muscle or lose enough fat. But what
are they, exactly, and how much do they actually influence your results?
The word genetics comes from a Greek word meaning “origin,” and
it refers to the molecular structure and function of our genes. Genes are
molecules in our DNA that provide instructions for the creation of special
types of proteins that then tell each of our cells what to do, such as build
muscle, make bone, carry nerve signals, and so forth.
While our bodies all contain the same types of genes, our programming
is different. For instance, the cells that form my iris were programmed to be
a certain shade of blue, whereas yours were programmed to be a different
shade, or a different color altogether. This variability in programming
applies to every physiological activity in our bodies.
So yes, your genes determine things like which muscle groups tend to
be your strong points, your natural hormone levels, how much fat you tend
to hold on your body, and where you tend to store it, but they don’t alter the
basic physiological processes by which your body builds muscle or loses fat.
So long as you don’t have a disease directly impairing these functions, you
can get into amazing shape if you know what you’re doing. Period.
I’ve helped quite a few hardgainers to gain 30, 40, and even 50 pounds
in 1–2 years of training and eating correctly (and with no drugs). I’ve helped
scores of men and women who were convinced that they were genetically
programmed to be fat get in the best shape of their lives by targeting and
changing the many little things they were doing wrong.

If you’re afraid that your body is genetically destined to be small, weak,
or fat, you can lay those fears to rest. Your body contains the same genetic
programs as mine that result in muscle growth and fat loss. In fact, your
body might be able to do certain functions relating to these things better
than mine. If I’ve made better progress than you with my physique, it’s only
because I have a better understanding of how to kick those programs into
gear—that is, I know more about proper training, eating, and resting. That’s
it.
Now, genetics can make parts of the process easier or harder. Some
people have naturally high testosterone and growth hormone levels, which
means faster muscle growth and an overall leaner physique. Some people’s
bodies mobilize fat stores more effectively than others, making weight loss
an easier endeavor. Genetics also play a role in the shape of your muscles.
Not all guys can have that perfect square chest or ridiculous bicep peak, and
not all women can have a gravity-defying, perfectly round butt.
But none of these things are limitations. Who cares if you gain muscle
or lose fat more slowly than someone else? As long as you can see regular
improvements and get to where you want to be, the added time is irrelevant.
Regardless of the “quality” of your muscle-building and fat-burning genetic
programming, you can build the body of your dreams in a matter of a few
years and maintain it for the rest of your life.
And it’s no big deal if you can’t have the same aesthetics as your favorite
fitness cover model. You can still look awesome and, more importantly, feel
great, and that’s what it’s all about.
MYTH #2:
YOU HAVE TO WORK YOUR

ABS MORE TO GET A SIX
PACK
THESE DAYS, HAVING SIX-PACK ABS is basically synonymous with be-

ing sexy and in shape. For men, this means a washboard stomach. The goal
is a little different for women: less defined but flat, lean, and toned.
Fitness magazines are constantly touting new ab workouts. Fancy new
supplements are released every month that promise to kick your fat burning
into high gear and help you get a lean, rippling stomach. There are quite a
few “ab gurus” online selling eBooks on the secrets of getting a six-pack.
At first glance, the belief that ab training gives you great abs seems to
make sense. That’s basically true with any other muscle in the body, so it
must also hold true for the abs, right?
Well, not quite.
While direct ab training will grow the muscle over time, just as with
any muscle, you’re not just going for bigger ab muscles—you’re going for
visibility. That is, if you have a beautifully developed set of abs hiding under
a layer of fat, you just look fat.
A study conducted by Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
demonstrated this very clearly with 24 healthy adults1. A control group did
nothing different, and the other did 140 repetitions of ab work 5 days per
week for 6 weeks. After the training period, the ab training group saw no
change in body weight, body fat percentage, abdominal circumference, or
abdominal skinfold measurements. Although their abs were stronger, they
looked exactly the same.
So the good news is you don’t have to train your abs for hours and hours
every week to have a six pack. In fact, you don’t have to train them at all.
What do you have to do?
If you’re a guy, the mystical secret to a sexy stomach is to get your body
fat percentage under 12%. Yup, that’s it. When your body fat percentage
approaches 10%, your abs become clearly visible whether you directly train
them or not. If you’re a woman, getting your body fat percentage under 20%
will get you a flat, lean, toned stomach. That’s all there is to it (although exact
numbers vary by body type, of course).
While reducing body fat percentage requires nothing more than making
sure your body burns more energy every day than it gets from food, there
are a few little tricks that have been scientifically proven to speed up the loss
of not just fat, but abdominal fat in particular.
The first is known as fasted training.
FASTED TRAINING HELPS REDUCE ABDOMINAL FAT

When you eat food, your body breaks it down into various substances,
one of which is glucose, or blood sugar. Your body also releases the hormone
insulin, which tells your liver, muscles, and fat tissue to take the glucose
from the blood and store it.
Your liver and muscles store the glucose as a substance known as
glycogen, and your fat cells store it as a substance known as triglycerides.
The storage of glycogen expands the size of the muscle cells, and the storage
of triglycerides expands the fat cells, which in turn expands your waistline.
When you’re in this fed state, fat burning does not occur2. Your body
uses the glucose in the blood for all its energy needs and stores the excess.
Depending on how much you eat, this state can last for several hours3.
But, as the nutrients recently eaten are absorbed, insulin levels decline,
and the body senses that its post-meal energy is running out. It then shifts
toward burning fat stores to meet its energy needs. Day after day, it juggles
these states, storing nutrients you eat and then burning its stores when the
supplies run out.
When insulin is at a baseline level, your body is in a fasted state and
therefore relies on its energy stores. For a moderate-sized meal, it takes 2–3
hours for your body to enter this state.
When exercise is performed in this state, fat loss is accelerated4. Weight
training in a fasted state is particularly effective5. As an added bonus,
research has shown that weightlifting in a fasted state results in an improved
anabolic response to a post-workout meal6.
A fasted state is also great for that six pack because it increases blood
MYTH #2: YOU HAVE TO WORK YOUR ABS MORE TO GET A SIX-PACK 9
flow in the abdominal region, resulting in more stubborn fat mobilization7.

And it gets even better: Fasted training first thing in the morning has an
added benefit since fasting for longer than 6 hours increases your body’s
ability to burn fat8.
There is one significant drawback: accelerated breakdown of muscle
tissue. Fortunately, this is simple to prevent. Supplementing with BCAAs
10–15 minutes before training will suppress muscle breakdown during your
workout9.
MYTH #3:
LIFTING LIGHT WEIGHTS FOR

MANY REPS GETS YOU TONED
COMMON “EXPERT” ADVICE FOR PEOPLE who are dieting to lose

weight is to start doing high-rep, high-volume workouts with light weights.
Explanations about how this is actually supposed to work usually degener-
ate into broscience about it “really bringing out striations,” giving you “really
nice cuts,” and other such nonsense.
I have some different advice for you. Do the opposite.
When you’re dieting to lose weight, lift heavy weights—weights that al-
low for no more than 10 reps if you’re a woman, and no more than 6 reps if
you’re a man.
Why? Several reasons.
The first relates to what you learned in the chapter on hardgainer
claims—heavy weights build strength and muscle faster than light weights.
What exactly do high-rep sets do to your muscles, then?
Well, research has shown that lifting lighter weights (40–60% of your
1RM) for many reps (15+) doesn’t do much in the way of improving your
absolute strength or building bigger muscles, but instead improves your
muscles’ aerobic capacity and time to exhaustion10. That is, it improves your
muscles’ ability to perform prolonged or repeated contractions with that
weight11. That’s why I don’t ever recommend training with light weights if
you’re trying to build muscle; it just doesn’t work that way.
There’s another reason to lift heavy, though, and it relates directly to fat
loss.
A study conducted by Greek sports scientists found that men who
trained with heavy weights (80–85% of their one-rep max, or 1RM) in-
creased their metabolic rates over the following three days, burning hun-
dreds more calories than the men who trained with lighter weights (45–65%
of their 1RM)12. Another study showed that the increased energy expendi-
ture after lifting heavy weights is mainly derived from burning fat (research-
ers couldn’t pinpoint why)13.
So, hit the weights and hit them hard if you want to jack up your meta-
bolic rate and, in turn, speed up your fat loss. And if you want to score extra
points, focus on compound lifts like squats and deadlifts because they burn
the most post-workout calories14.
MYTH #4:
WOMEN SHOULD TRAIN

DIFFERENTLY THAN MEN
MOST WOMEN DESIRE THE SAME type of body. They want to be lean
but not too skinny. They want to have some muscle definition, particularly
in their arms, stomach, and legs. And they want to have a bubbly butt that
fills their jeans. And, amen! I’m all for that.
To achieve this physique, the average woman needs to lose fat and add
some muscle. Just losing the fat wouldn’t be enough as most women lack the
muscle that gives an athletic look (leaving them with the common skinny-
fat body type).
What is the best way to achieve these goals? Conventional “wisdom”
has women grinding away on the treadmill every day and working out with
three-pound dumbbells. I’ve yet to see a woman achieve a fitness model
physique by doing that.
Achieving a lean, athletic look takes nothing more than having a good
amount of muscle and low body fat percentage. Reducing body fat percent-
age is mainly a function of diet, but what’s the best way to build muscle?
Lifting weights, of course. And you’re probably not surprised that I recom-
mend heavy weights.
I can already hear you disagreeing. Women shouldn’t lift heavy weights
because they don’t want to get bulky, right? Wrong. It’s incredibly difficult
for a woman to ever reach the point of looking bulky, regardless of how hard
or often she trains.
The hormone that most directly regulates muscle growth is testosterone,
and an average woman’s testosterone levels are a mere 5–10% of an average
man’s. In one study, post-exercise testosterone levels were 45 times higher in

men than women15. This isn’t surprising when you consider that resistance
training doesn’t even increase testosterone levels in women—only a growth
hormone called estradiol (a type of estrogen) and cortisol16.
If you’re a woman, I PROMISE you that you will never wake up one
day disgusted with your bulky physique if you lift heavy weights (heavy for
YOU, but light for weightlifting guys) and stay lean. Getting to the point of
having large, protruding muscles is a very gradual, grueling process that you
would have to consciously work at every day, and it would take years.
BENEFITS OF BUILDING MUSCLES

If you’re a woman and you’re still not quite sold on weightlifting yet,
these health benefits of building your muscles, as discussed in a study con-
ducted by the University of Texas, will change your mind17:
• Your chances of developing diseases like diabetes, metabolic
syndrome, and cancer are significantly reduced.
• Your bones become stronger.
• Your metabolism speeds up because muscle, even when idle, burns
energy. This makes it easier to stay lean.
• Your life expectancy increases.
• Your immune system becomes stronger.
And what about your physique? Well, gaining muscle does wonders for
that too. Strong, well-developed muscles are what give women the curves
they love. Nothing improves your image more in and out of your clothes
than lean, defined muscles.
If all that isn’t enough, then you should also know that maintaining a
strong, well-muscled body helps you age better. Research has shown that
greater muscle mass percentage in older women is associated with better
mobility, lower body weight, and lower body fat levels18.
Now, what qualifies as heavy weight for a woman? Weight that is heavy
enough to limit you to 8–10 repetitions. Lifting heavy weights (relative to
your strength, of course) is just the fastest way to change your physique.
If you’re a woman and you want toned, sexy legs and a round, tight butt,
then you can’t beat an intense workout of “boy exercises” such as barbell
squats, Romanian deadlifts, and barbell lunges. If you want sleek, defined
arms, the quickest way to get there is by going heavy on exercises like dumb-
bell curls, straight-bar curls, and EZ-bar curls.
MYTH #4: WOMEN SHOULD TRAIN DIFFERENTLY THAN MEN 15
Women, it’s time to put down the pink play weights and get sexy by lift-
ing with the guys! (They’ll find it pretty hot, too.)
MYTH #5:
YOU DON’T HAVE TO LIFT

WEIGHTS IF YOU JUST WANT
TO BE HEALTHY AND FIT
GENERALLY SPEAKING, THERE ARE TWO TYPES of people in the

gym: those on the cardio machines trying to get or stay thin or lean and
those on the weights and machines trying to get bigger muscles.
There certainly are many benefits of cardio for weightlifters, but what
about the benefits of weightlifting for people who just do cardio?
Those who stick to cardio often don’t see the point in lifting weights
because they want to have a lean, athletic look. At the extreme end, cardio
junkies might even think lifting is only for meatheads who have neurotic
breakdowns if they don’t have a protein shake every 3 hours.
The type of physique most guys and gals want actually requires that
they gain a fair amount of lean mass—and weightlifting is the only way to do
this efficiently—but there are even greater benefits to consider.
Unless you do something to stop it, starting in your 20s, your body
will lose a small amount of muscle and strength every year19. Research has
shown that upwards of 40% of total muscle is lost between the ages of 20
and 6020.
In medical lingo, this is known as sarcopenia, and studies have associ-
ated the gradual loss of strength and muscle with:
• Increased risk of diabetes and heart disease
• Increased risk of osteoporosis
• Shorter lifespan
• Decline of metabolic health21

• Frailty and disability in the elderly22
People often build muscle merely to look good, but it’s incredibly
healthy in the long term as well. Muscle mass not only combats sarcopenia,
but it imparts many of the metabolic benefits once thought to be the sole
realm of cardiovascular exercise. And in terms of aging, having a significant
amount of muscle mass is one of the most important things you do can do
maintain your health and ward off disease.
I strongly believe that everyone, men and women of all ages, should
include some form of resistance training in their exercise routine. The fre-
quency and intensity of the training should be dictated by personal goals,
but even if your goal is just to stay healthy, resistance training must be part
of your workout regimen.
And don’t think that weightlifting is only for young people. Research
has shown that middle-aged men (35–50 years old) on a weightlifting pro-
gram can build strength and muscle as well as college-aged men24. Studies
have even shown that the elderly (ages 60 to 80) can make significant gains
in both muscle growth and strength in response to regular weightlifting24.
MYTH #6:
WHEN DOING CARDIO, YOU WANT

TO GET YOUR HEART RATE INTO
THE “FAT BURNING ZONE”
LIKE MOST BAD ADVICE IN THE HEALTH and fitness industry, this
myth is given a false air of scientific legitimacy.
Cardio machines often show pretty graphs indicating where your heart
rate should be for “fat burning” versus “cardiovascular training.” You calcu-
late this magical heart rate by subtracting your age from 200 and multiply-
ing this number by 0.6. If you keep your heart rate at this number, as the
story goes, you’ll be in the “fat burning zone.”
There’s a kernel of truth here. You do burn both fat and carbohydrates
when you exercise, and the proportion varies with the intensity of exercise.
A very low-intensity activity like walking taps mainly into fat stores, where-
as high-intensity sprints pull much more heavily from carbohydrate stores.
At about 60% of maximum exertion, your body gets about half of its en-
ergy from carbohydrate stores and half from fat stores (which is why many
“experts” claim that you should work in the range of 60–70% of maximum
exertion).
Based on the above, you might think that I’m actually arguing in de-
fense of this myth, but there’s more to consider.
The first issue is total calories burned while exercising. If you walk
off 100 calories, 85 of which come from fat stores, that isn’t as effective as
spending that time in a moderate run that burns off 400 calories with 200
coming from fat. And that, in turn, isn’t as effective as spending that time
doing sprint intervals that burn off 800 calories with 300 coming from fat.
The second issue to consider is that studies such as those conducted by
Laval University25, Baylor College of Medicine26, and the University of New

South Wales have shown that shorter, high-intensity cardio sessions result
in greater fat loss over time than low-intensity sessions27. Research has also
shown that high-intensity training is more muscle-sparing than low-inten-
sity cardio28.
Although the exact mechanisms of how high-intensity cardio trumps
steady-state cardio aren’t fully understood yet, scientists have isolated quite
a few of the factors: increased resting metabolic rate for upwards of 24 hours
after exercise; improved insulin sensitivity in the muscles; higher levels of
fat oxidation in the muscles; significant spikes in growth hormone levels
(which aid in fat loss) and catecholamine levels (chemicals your body pro-
duces to directly induce fat mobilization); and post-exercise appetite sup-
pression29.
You can apply high-intensity interval training (or HIIT) to any type of
cardio that you would normally do. You can head outside and walk and
sprint, or you can hop on the elliptical trainer or recumbent bike to get it
done.
A standard HIIT protocol looks like this:
1. Start your workout with 23 minutes of low-intensity warm-up.
2. Go all-out, as fast as possible, for 30–60 seconds (if you’re new to
HIIT, 30-second intervals will be plenty, but you want to try to
work toward being able to do 60-second intervals).
3. Slow it down to a low-intensity recovery period for the same period
as your high-intensity interval. Again, if you’re new to HIIT, you
may need to extend this rest period to 1.5–2 times as long as your
high-intensity interval. If you’re still out of breath and your heart is
racing, you’re not ready to hit the high-intensity again.
4. Repeat this cycle of all-out and recovery intervals for 20–30
minutes.
5. Finish with a 2–3 minute cool-down at a low intensity.
Give it a try next time you’re planning on losing weight. You’ll be
amazed at how much more effective your workouts are.
MYTH #7:
FASTING PUTS
YOUR BODY INTO
“STARVATION MODE”
WE’VE ALL HEARD THIS A MILLION TIMES, and it seems to make

logical sense.
If we go too long without eating, wouldn’t our body think it’s being
starved and drastically reduce its metabolic speed? In order to better deal
with future starvation, wouldn’t it increase the rate at which it stores fat once
we actually do eat?
Regardless of how much it might seem theoretically plausible, it’s not
true.
FASTING DOESN’T NEGATIVELY AFFECT YOUR METABOLISM

A study conducted by the University of Rochester showed that meta-
bolic rate didn’t decline until 60 hours of fasting—and the reduction was a
mere 8%30! In fact, research has demonstrated that the metabolism actually
speeds up after 36–48 hours of fasting31, 32.
True starvation from the perspective of the body occurs after about 3
days (72 hours) of not eating, at which point the primary source of energy
becomes the breakdown of proteins (and the biggest source of protein is
muscle)33.
Until then it relies on body fat and glycogen stores in the liver and mus-
cles for its energy, nothing more than routine biological functioning. Once
it has to begin breaking down proteins for energy, however, the body knows
its survival imperiled, and that is when the real starvation mode begins.
This makes sense from an evolutionary perspective. If we haven’t eaten
in quite some time, what does our body want us to do? Go find food, of
course. And how does it stimulate us to do that? By increasing production
of two chemicals called adrenaline and noradrenaline, which sharpen our
minds and make us want to go move around. They also increase our basal
metabolic rate, the minimal amount of calories you burn at absolute rest.
(Exercise elevates these chemicals as well.)
And what happens when we lose muscle? We become physically weak-
er, our metabolism slows down, we become more likely to succumb to dis-
ease, and eventually we die (usually from a heart attack).
THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF FASTING

A growing body of evidence is demonstrating that fasting has various
health benefits. Studies have shown that fasting increases insulin sensitivity,
stress resistance, fat oxidation, and life span and reduces the risk of dis-
ease34.
Yes, you read that right: Relatively long periods of fasting (16–24 hours)
actually improve your health and help you burn more fat without any wor-
ries of the body obsessively storing every calorie you eat after the fast.
There are dietary strategies built around this research, and they are
known as intermittent fasting routines. Such protocols entail splitting up
your days into fasting and feeding periods, usually calling for 16–20 hours
of fasting and 4–8-hour “feeding windows.” You eat your entire day’s worth
of calories during these feeding periods, which requires large meals, espe-
cially if you’re lifting weights.
You should also know that intermittent fasting while exercising regu-
larly requires proper meal and workout timing if you’re to make optimal
gains. I won’t go into all the details here, but if you’re interested in following
this style of dieting, I recommend you read my blog post on it, which you
can find by visiting my website (www.muscleforlife.com) and searching for
“intermittent fasting.”
Personally, I don’t like having to eat large (1,000+ calories) meals due to
the uncomfortable fullness, as well as the ensuing lethargy caused by a hor-
mone called cholecystokinin that is released when you eat protein and fat35.
The key takeaway of this chapter is that you can eat infrequently if that’s
how you like to do it, or have to due to schedule hiccups. Only two meals
need be set in stone: your pre- and post-workout meals. Your pre-workout
meal should contain about 30 grams of protein and carbohydrate, and your
post-workout meal should contain about the same amount of protein and
between 30–40% of your total daily carbs.
MYTH 7#: FASTING PUTS YOUR BODY INTO “STARVATION MODE” 23
You can even work in a planned fast once or twice per week to reap
some of its benefits. I will occasionally do this by simply skipping breakfast
on a day that I’m not lifting (I lift early in the morning) and eating my first
meal after about 12–14 hours of fasting.
MYTH #8:
IF YOU EAT A LOT OF

CARBS, YOU WILL
ALWAYS BE FAT
THE HYSTERICAL CRUSADE AGAINST the carbohydrate has reached a

frantic pitch these days.
From the scientifically bankrupt theories of guys like Gary Taubes to
the trendy low-carb diets like Paleo, Zone, Dukan, and so forth, the carbo-
hydrate is now the victim of the same level of persecution that saturated fat
endured for decades.
We’ve come to learn that saturated fats aren’t the evil heart killers they
were made out to be36. (This excludes the processed form, trans fat, which is
known to increase risk of heart disease, among other health issues37.)
If we’re to believe the leaders of the Carbohydrate Inquisition, this mol-
ecule will force us to be fat, break our metabolism, lead us to develop dia-
betes and other diseases, and generally turn us into hungry, horrible people.
If you ditch the diabolic carbohydrate, “experts” claim you will melt
fat away and keep it off (without having to count pesky calories), build an
invincible immune system, live forever, and maybe even develop superpow-
ers. And you’ll be part of the cool crowd to boot.
But is this dietary culture war justified? In other words, does it have any
basis in science?
CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE AND INSULIN LEVELS

Much of the carbohydrate controversy revolves around its relationship
to the hormone insulin.
As the unfounded claims go, insulin makes you fat, and carbohydrates
spike insulin; thus, “carbohydrates make you fat.” Sounds so simple, right?
Well, yeah, the story is simple because it’s false.
While it’s true that insulin’s job is to pull glucose out of the blood and
store excess as fat, the hormone is also responsible for driving amino acids
into our muscles for protein synthesis and clearing dietary fats out of the
blood (which are stored as body fat more efficiently than carbohydrate, I
might add)38. On top of all that, insulin has a mild anti-catabolic effect,
meaning it helps preserve your muscle39.
And while it’s also true that eating carbohydrates increases insulin lev-
els in your blood, many common sources of protein (such as eggs, cheese,
beef, and fish) are comparable in their ability to do the same40.
Some people claim that because your body generally produces more
insulin when you eat carbohydrates, this leads to more fat storage. They’re
wrong—research has shown that the amount of insulin your body produces
in response to eating food (or insulin response) doesn’t affect the amount of
fat stored41.
So, in short, insulin is your friend, not part of a conspiracy between
your pancreas and fat cells to ruin your self-image.
That’s one strike against the “carbs make you fat” camp. Now let’s look at
the connection between carbohydrate intake and fat loss.
CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE AND REAL-WORLD WEIGHT LOSS

Many low-carb gurus will claim that you can lose weight much more
quickly if you consume very few carbs every day. Some people even believe
they can only lose weight if they cut their carbs to nil.
The problem with these beliefs is they fly in the face of both basic physi-
ology and scientific findings, and they mask the most common weight-loss
roadblock: eating too much while moving too little.
A simple review of scientific literature shows that diet composition has
no effect on long-term weight loss.
Let’s first look at a study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania42.
Researchers assigned 63 obese adults to either a low-carb, high-protein,
high-fat diet (20 grams of carbohydrate per day, gradually increased until
target weight was achieved), or a conventional diet of 60% of calories from
carbohydrates, 25% from fat, and 15% from protein.
The result: The low-carb group lost more weight in the first 3 months,
but the difference at 12 months was insignificant.
Reducing carbohydrate intake decreases the amount of glycogen we
store in our liver and muscles43. The 3-month result isn’t surprising, then,
MYTH #8: IF YOU EAT A LOT OF CARBS, YOU WILL ALWAYS BE FAT 27
considering that total body water retention is decreased44. This causes a rap-
id drop in weight that has nothing to do with burning fat (anyone that has
reduced carbohydrate intake as a means of cutting calories for weight loss
has experienced this).
Harvard University published a study in 2009 on the effects of diet com-
position and weight loss. The researchers assigned 811 overweight adults to
one of four diets, which were comprised of the following percentages of fat,
protein, and carbs: 20%, 15%, and 65%; 40%, 15%, and 45%; and 40%, 25%,
and 35%45.
After 6 months of dieting, participants had lost and average of 6 kg
(roughly 13.2 pounds). They began to regain weight after 12 months, and
by 2 years, weight loss averaged out to 4 kg, with no meaningful differences
between low-protein or high-protein, low-fat or high-fat, and low-carb or
high-carb groups.
A study conducted by Arizona State University found that an 8-week
high-carbohydrate, low-fat, low-protein diet was equally effective in terms
of weight loss as a low-carbohydrate, low-fat, high-protein diet46.
So, the conclusion we can derive is brutally simple and clear: As long
as you keep yourself in a caloric deficit, you’ll lose weight regardless of the
dietary protocol you follow47.
EXCEPTIONS TO THE RULE: WHEN LOW-CARB (OR HIGH-CARB)

MIGHT BE BETTER
Despite this body of evidence, practical experience in coaching hun-
dreds of people has taught me that some people just do better on high-carb
or low-carb diets, whereas some do fine with either.
For instance, some people—like myself—do very well with high-carbo-
hydrate diets. They can lose weight very easily, feel energized all day with-
out any crashes, and are able to maintain considerable strength in the gym.
Others don’t do well with a high-carb approach. Weight loss is slower than
optimal, they are very hungry, which leads to overeating, and any progress
comes with frustrating energy highs and lows.
This personal response can go the other way, too. When people don’t
react well to low-carb, high-fat diets, they can feel lethargic and mentally
clouded, lose a ton of strength, and have trouble getting lean. Others thrive
on fats, having plenty of energy and a general sense of well-being. What
gives?
While feeling like crap certainly increases the chance you’ll overeat and
give less than 100% in your workouts, there’s more at work here.
Research has shown that some people’s bodies deal better with large
amounts of dietary fat than others48, responding with positive metabolic
changes like an increase in resting energy expenditure and fat oxidation
to maintain energy balance49. It can also result in better appetite control50.
However, other people’s bodies respond negatively to high amounts of di-
etary fat and are more likely to store it as stubborn body fat. Such research
sheds light on why different individuals respond so well or poorly to low-
carb, high-fat diets.
The above also relates to research on how insulin sensitivity and re-
sponse can affect diet results. Studies have shown that weight-loss efforts
aren’t improved or impaired by insulin sensitivity or resistance per se51. But
when we move away from a balance of nutrients and use high-carb, low-
fat or low-carb, high-fat diets in conjunction with different levels of insulin
sensitivity and response, things change.
For instance, a study conducted by the Tufts-New England Medical
Center found that a low-glycemic load diet helped overweight adults with
high insulin secretion lose more weight, but did not help overweight adults
with low insulin secretion52.
A study conducted by the University of Colorado demonstrated that
obese women who were insulin sensitive lost significantly more weight on
a high-carb, low-fat diet than a low-carb, high-fat diet (average weight loss
of 13.5% vs. 6.8% of body weight, respectively). Women who were insu-
lin resistant lost significantly more weight on a low-carb, high-fat diet than
a high-carb, low-fat diet (average weight loss of 13.4% vs. 8.5% of body
weight, respectively)53.
What we can take away from these studies (and my anecdotal observa-
tions) is that if you have good insulin sensitivity and low secretion (good
insulin response), you’ll probably lose weight more easily on a high-carb,
low-fat diet. On the other hand, if you have poor insulin sensitivity and high
secretion (poor insulin response), odds are you’ll do better with a low-carb,
high-fat diet.
WHICH APPROACH DO I USE, THEN? HIGH-CARB OR LOW-

CARB?
Unfortunately it’s not easy to tell if your body type responds better to a
high-fat or low-fat diet, but it is fairly easy to take an educated guess regard-
ing your body’s insulin dynamics.
After eating a high-carb meal, signs of good insulin sensitivity and re-
sponse are pumped muscles that feel “full,” mental alertness, stable energy
levels (no crash), and satiety. Signs of poor insulin sensitivity and response
MYTH #8: IF YOU EAT A LOT OF CARBS, YOU WILL ALWAYS BE FAT 29
are bloat, gassiness, mental fogginess/inability to focus, sleepiness, and hun-

ger soon after eating.
Based on the above symptoms, you can decide which approach to try.
But remember that these are only general guidelines—in the end, actual
weight loss is what matters most.
You should be able to lose 1–2 lbs. per week with the right caloric in-
take. If you’re not seeing progress despite being absolutely certain that you’re
in a proper caloric deficit, you may benefit from altering the composition
of your diet.
MYTH #9:
EAT MANY SMALL MEALS PER

DAY TO STOKE THE METABOLISM
AND CONTROL HUNGER
THIS MYTH WAS DIETARY DOGMA for the longest time and is still
promoted by fitness “experts” and related magazines.
The idea that small, frequent meals will speed up your metabolism and
help you control hunger kind of makes sense at first. When you eat, your
metabolic rate increases as it breaks down the food. So, if you eat every few
hours, your metabolism will remain in a constantly elevated state, right?
And nibbling on food throughout the day should help reduce hunger, right?
Bodies are not so simple. Like many of the myths that seem to make
sense on paper, this one just doesn’t pan out in clinical research.
MEAL FREQUENCY AND YOUR METABOLISM

Each type of essential nutrient (protein, carbohydrate, and fat) requires
varying amounts of energy to break down and process. This is the thermic
effect of food consumption and is the metabolic boost that comes after eat-
ing.
The magnitude and duration of that boost depends on how much you
eat. A small meal causes a small metabolic spike that doesn’t last very long,
whereas a large meal produces a larger spike that lasts longer.
So the question, then, is if a higher frequency of smaller meals per day
increases total energy expenditure over a 24-hour period than fewer, larger
meals. The French National Institute of Health and Medical Research had
the same question and performed an extensive review of literature to pro-
vide an answer.
Researchers looked at scores of studies comparing the thermic effect

of food in a wide variety of eating patterns, ranging from 1 to 17 meals per
day54. In terms of 24-hour energy expenditure, they found no difference
between nibbling and gorging. Small meals caused small, short metabolic
boosts, and large meals caused larger, longer boosts, but by the end of each
day, they balanced out in terms of total calories burned.
A study conducted by the University of Ontario split participants into
two dietary groups: 3 meals per day vs. 3 meals plus 3 snacks per day, with
both in a caloric restriction for weight loss55. After 8 weeks, researchers
found no significant difference in average weight loss, fat loss, and muscle
loss among 16 individuals.
While increasing meal frequency can make dieting more enjoyable for
some, it doesn’t help burn more energy.
MEAL FREQUENCY AND APPETITE

A study conducted by the University of Missouri with 27 overweight/
obese men found that after 12 weeks of dieting to lose weight, increasing
protein intake improved appetite control, but meal frequency (3 vs. 6 meals
per day) had no effect56.
The University of Kansas investigated the effects of meal frequency and
protein intake on perceived appetite, satiety, and hormonal responses in
overweight/obese men57. In line with many other studies, the researchers
found that higher protein intake led to greater feelings of fullness and that 6
meals actually resulted in lower daily fullness than 3 meals.
On the other hand, you can find studies wherein participants were less
satiated on 3 meals per day and found that increasing meal frequency in-
creased feelings of fullness, thereby making it easier to stick to their diets.
The bottom line is that there are many variables, including psychologi-
cal ones, and clinical evidence shows that it’s incorrect to conclusively state
that either more or fewer meals per day for hunger control will be best for
everyone.
HOW MANY MEALS SHOULD I EAT?

How often you should eat boils down to personal preference. As the
cliché goes, the best dietary protocol is the one you’ll stick to, and reducing
psychological stress makes a big difference in increasing diet compliance
and thus overall effectiveness.
I often recommend eating more, smaller meals per day. In my experi-
ence coaching hundreds of people, many prefer the feeling of eating every
few hours as opposed to fewer, larger ones separated by 5—6 hours. I per-
MYTH 9: EAT MANY SMALL MEALS PER DAY TO STOKE THE METABOLISM 33
AND CONTROL HUNGER
sonally don’t like eating 800–1,000 calories to then feel stuffed for several
hours. I much prefer a 400-calorie meal that leaves me satisfied for a few
hours, followed by another smaller meal with different ingredients and fla-
vors, and so forth.
That said, if someone can’t or doesn’t want to eat frequently, then we
work out a meal plan consisting of fewer, larger meals that fit their prefer-
ences or lifestyle. Our hunger patterns are established by our meal patterns,
so it’s usually easiest to work around your schedule, not against it58.
MYTH #10:
YOU CAN’T DRINK

ALCOHOL IF YOU WANT
TO LOOK GOOD
ALCOHOL AND ITS RELATION TO HEALTH and fitness is a tricky sub-

ject.
In small amounts—a drink or two a day—it has potential health ben-
efits like improved insulin sensitivity59, healthier cardiac function60, and in-
crease in blood lipids (fatty substances in your blood, which when lowered,
reduce your risk of heart disease)61.
In larger amounts, alcohol leads to barely conscious drives home, fist-
fights over who’s the best NFL rusher of all time, and charges of public inde-
cency. And to nobody’s surprise, chronic alcohol abuse basically just breaks
your ass62.
But this chapter isn’t about the various effects of mild or severe drink-
ing.
Instead, it will answer a question on all dieters’ and body builders’
minds: How much alcohol can we drink before it will negatively affect our
efforts to lose weight and build muscle?
ALCOHOL AND FAT LOSS

Similar to the carbohydrate inquisition that’s in vogue these days, alco-
hol is the target of many criticisms. According to some people, if you drink,
you’re going to get fat—end of story. And, depending on whom you talk to,
you might just lose all your muscle as a bonus.
Well, if we take a quick look at epidemiological research, we can see
that moderate alcohol consumption is actually associated with lower body
weight, not higher63.

A study published in 1985 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
looked at the diets of 1,944 adults ages 18 to 7464. Researchers found that an
increase in calories from ethanol (alcohol) alone didn’t result in the weight
gain that would normally occur if those calories were from protein, carbs,
or fat. In fact, thanks to regular alcohol intake, drinkers took in an average
of 16% more calories each day than non-drinkers and had the same levels of
physical activity, but weren’t any fatter than their alcohol-free counterparts.
Another study following obese women on a weight-loss diet instructed
one group to intake 10% of daily calories from white wine and another from
grape juice65. After 3 months, the white wine drinkers lost about 2 pounds
more than the grape juice group.
The exact mechanisms at work aren’t totally clear, but a likely factor
is that drinking can reduce your appetite for food66. According to another
study, it may also be related to alcohol’s effects on insulin sensitivity67.
While it may seem like I’m encouraging you to drink to get shredded,
that’s not the goal. Alcohol consumption can hinder your weight loss efforts,
but in an indirect way.
While alcohol itself basically can’t be stored as body fat68, it blocks fat
oxidation, which in turn accelerates the rate at which the body stores dietary
fat as body fat69.
In short, it’s not the calories from alcohol that can make you fat, but all
the crap that you eat with it, which is hard to resist when you’re hammered.
So, if you want to be able to drink while dieting and still lose weight, don’t
consume alcohol more than one day per week, and use the following tips to
protect yourself from excess fat storage:
• Restrict your dietary fat intake that day, and don’t eat any fatty
foods while you’re drinking.
• Get the vast majority of your calories from protein and carbs that
day (with most coming from protein).
• Stay away from carb-laden drinks like beer and fruity cocktails. Dry
wines are a good choice as well as spirits (when not mixed with
sugary soda or juices).
By following these guidelines, you can enjoy a few drinks every week
without having to feel guilty and without ruining your weight-loss regimen.
MYTH #10: YOU CAN’T DRINK ALCOHOL IF YOU WANT TO LOOK GOOD 37
ALCOHOL AND TESTOSTERONE LEVELS

Men do have to face the music when it comes to one result of alcohol:
It suppresses testosterone production70. The magnitude of this effect varies.
A study conducted by the TNO Nutrition and Food Research Institute
had 10 men drink 30–40 grams of alcohol per day (2 to 3 beers, 2 to 3 ounces
of liquor, or 10 to 15 ounces of wine). After 3 weeks, their testosterone levels
had dropped by about 7% (pretty insignificant)71. Another study had 9 men
drink 60–70 grams after working out, and it had no effect on testosterone
levels during the following 5 hours72.
What happens when we increase the post-workout dose, though?
The University of Helsinki conducted a similar study, administering 1.5
g ethanol per kg of body weight (the equivalent of six beers or six 1.5-oz.
shots) to 8 healthy men ages 20 to 26. Their testosterone levels dropped by
23% on average between the 10th and 16th hour after they started drink-
ing73. Furthermore, cortisol levels were elevated by 36% on average, and
growth hormone secretion was heavily suppressed.
Another study conducted by the same university agreed: Binge drink-
ing after engaging in exercise is bad for testosterone production, thus prov-
ing that 10 beers is a poor post-workout meal (awww, shucks)74.
All things considered, if you have a few drinks here and there, you
probably have nothing to worry about in terms of testosterone production.
But doing post-workout shots? Not a good idea.
ALCOHOL AND MUSCLE RECOVERY AND PERFORMANCE

In rat and in vitro studies, alcohol impairs protein synthesis75, 76. Some
people directly apply that type of research to living, breathing humans and
say it prevents you from building muscle and accelerates muscle loss.
Well, it doesn’t work like that. Rats and humans have major metabolic
differences, and in vitro findings don’t always pan out in vivo.
In live humans, muscle-wasting effects of alcohol have only been seen
in chronic alcoholics77. If you have 7+ drinks per day, you’re going to have
trouble building muscle. And walking. And remembering your name.
It’s also commonly claimed that alcohol consumption impairs strength
and interferes with the body’s ability to repair muscle damage. According
to studies conducted by the University of Massachusetts and Aarhus Uni-
versity, however, alcohol has no effect on strength or indicators of exercise-
induced muscle78, 79.
To the contrary, a study conducted by Massey University showed that
1 g of ethanol per kg of body weight after exercise magnified post-workout
muscle damage80. It should be noted that the workout regimen used was
a bit ridiculous (300 eccentric contractions on a machine for training the
legs), so we can’t be sure its findings apply to more traditional, lower-volume
weightlifting workouts.
TO DRINK OR NOT TO DRINK?

Alcohol advocates like to talk it up as some kind of superfood, but the
bottom line is it’s not necessary in any way for good health and it won’t give
you any performance benefits.
If you’re like me and don’t drink, I don’t see any reason to start. If you
drink regularly, you have a lot more to worry about than it interfering with
muscle gains.
But if you drink infrequently and moderately enough to not notice any
after-effects (no hangovers or lingering issues), then you probably don’t
have reason to give it up altogether.
MYTH #11:
DON’T EAT AT NIGHT IF

YOU WANT TO LOSE
WEIGHT
THIS IS SILLY ADVICE, but it’s followed by many. Losing weight requires
that you consume less energy (calories) than you expend, and meal timing
has little bearing on this.
If you overeat during the day instead of late at night, there’s no differ-
ence in the effect of those extra calories. Weight loss is such a precise activity
that if you eat too much in just one meal but stick to your meal plan for the
rest of the day, you can fail to lose fat that day.
A literature review conducted by the French National Institute of Health
and Medical Research highlights several key findings relating to meal fre-
quency:
• Past studies that associated a “grazing” style of eating (many small
meals per day) with greater weight loss were flawed in various ways,
and the conclusions drawn from them even more so.
• Newer, more rigorous research has shown that there are no
metabolic advantages to eating fewer or greater meals per day.
• Meal patterns do not directly accelerate or impair weight loss, but
can predispose people to overeat and thus fail to lose weight81.
You may be shocked to learn that studies have shown that eating larger
meals later in evening can actually result in more fat loss and less muscle
loss82. (I’ve yet to experience this personally, but it soothed any fears I had
in the past about eating late dinners.)
I like to eat a couple smaller meals at night (in addition to larger break-
fasts and lunches), but if your schedule or lifestyle is better suited to larger
meals at night, don’t worry—it won’t get in the way of hitting your goals.
Instead of trying to tough it out for hours and hours with no food at night,
plan your meals so you can eat on a schedule that you like while maintaining
a caloric deficit, and you will lose weight.
MYTH #12:
I’M OVERWEIGHT
BECAUSE I HAVE A SLOW
METABOLISM
I DON’T KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I’ve heard an overweight person

chalk up his or her physical condition to a slow metabolism. It’s the easiest
excuse. If a diet or exercise routine failed, it’s not that he or she did it wrong,
it’s just that dang slow metabolism.
The fact is almost everyone that leans on this popular old crutch is
wrong. I say almost everyone because some people actually do have an un-
der-performing thyroid (hypothyroidism); this causes the basal metabolic
rate to drop, which in turn makes it easier to overeat and gain weight83.
Other symptoms of a low-functioning thyroid are depression, sleepiness
and fatigue, loss of sex drive, constipation, and hair loss. If you suspect that
you might have a thyroid problem, you should see a doctor to get your hor-
mone levels checked.
That said, most of us have perfectly functioning thyroids, and our me-
tabolisms are more than adequate for weight loss. So let’s get to the bottom
of this myth, starting with the basics of metabolism and how it relates to
weight loss.
WHAT IS ACTUALLY MEANT BY METABOLIC SPEED?

Your body burns a certain number of calories regardless of any physi-
cal activity, and this is called your basal metabolic rate (BMR). Your total
daily energy expenditure (TDEE) for a day is your BMR plus the energy
expended during any physical activities.
When your metabolism is said to “speed up” or “slow down,” what is
actually meant is that your basal metabolic rate goes up or goes down. That
is, your body burns more or less calories while at rest, making it harder or
easier to overeat and gain weight.
Of course, some people do have naturally faster metabolisms than oth-
ers. Their bodies happen to burn more energy while at rest, and thus it’s
easier for them to stay lean and harder for them to gain weight. However,
the difference between the fastest and slowest of metabolisms isn’t as pro-
found as many people think.
A literature review conducted by the University of Vermont found that
about 68% of people’s metabolisms are within 5–8% of the population aver-
age, and 96% are within 10–16% of the population average84.
To illustrate this more concretely, if we assume 2,000 calories as an aver-
age BMR, 68% of people would fall in the BMR range of about 1,800–2,200
calories per day and 96% in the range of about 1,700–2,300 calories per
day. The difference between the absolute slowest and fastest metabolisms
would be about 600 calories per day. While that sounds fairly significant,
we’re comparing two extremes here. The vast majority of people are, for all
intents and purposes, metabolically comparable.
“How can so-and-so eat nothing but pizza and ice cream and never gain
weight, then?” you might be thinking. I can guarantee you that the person
you have in mind doesn’t eat nearly as many calories as you might think, or
burns more calories than you’re accounting for. Remember: Even if you eat
nothing but junk, as long as you don’t overeat in terms of calories, you won’t
become overweight (your general health would be another issue, though!).
Your metabolism might make it a tiny bit harder for you to reach a
caloric deficit than someone else, but nobody has a metabolism so fast that
they can never exercise yet eat thousands of calories day in and day out
without gaining weight.
38 MORE DISTASTROUS HEALTH &
FITNESS MYTHS THAT KEEP PEOPLE
FAT, WEAK, AND UNHEALTHY?
If you’ve ever felt lost in the sea of contradictory training and diet ad-
vice out there and you just want to know once and for all what works and
what doesn’t, then you need to read Muscle Myths.
Thanks to the overwhelming amount of fitness pseudo-science and lies
being pushed on us every day by bogus magazines and self-styled “gurus,”
it’s becoming harder and harder to get in shape.
Muscle Myths was written to debunk the most commonplace and harm-
ful gimmicks, fads, myths, and misinformation in the health and fitness in-
dustry.
Here are just some of the things you’ll learn in this book:
• Why you don’t have to completely cut out carbs or fat, or eat weird
combinations of food to lose weight.
• The truth about supplements and why 99% of them are a complete
waste of money (and the few that are actually scientifically proven
to work).
• Why women shouldn’t be training differently than men if they want
the lean, toned, and sexy type of body that they see in magazines,
TV shows, and movies.
• A no-BS guide to supplements that will save you hundreds if not
THOUSANDS of dollars each year that you would’ve wasted on
products that are nothing more than bunk science and marketing
hype.
• How to get shredded while still indulging in the "cheat" foods that
you love every week like pasta, pizza, and ice cream.
• The scientific secrets of getting a six-pack. Forget 6-minute
gimmicks, doing endless crunches, and hours of grueling cardio—
it’s actually pretty easy when you know what you’re doing.
• Training and diet methods that will completely shatter any
perceived “genetic barriers” that you think are holding you back
from building muscle or losing weight.
• And much more.
This book will save you the money, time, and frustration of falling into
the traps of misleading diet plans and products, and teach you how to finally
start seeing real results with your diet and exercise.
Click here to learn more about this book!

BONUS REPORT
FINALLY! ESCAPE THE HORRORS OF “DIETING” AND

BUILD MUSCLE OR LOSE FAT BY EATING TASTY,
NUTRITIOUS FOOD!
If you want to know how to build muscle and burn fat by eating healthy,
delicious meals that are easy to cook and easy on your wallet, then you want
to read this special report.
Do you lack confidence in the kitchen and think that you just can’t cook
great food?
Are you not sure of how to prepare food that is not only delicious and
healthy but also effective in helping you build muscle and lose fat?
Are you afraid that cooking nutritious, restaurant-quality meals is too

time-consuming and expensive?
Do you think that eating healthy means having to force down the same
boring, bland food every day?
If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, don’t worry—you’re

not alone. And this book is going to help. Inside you’ll find 15 fast, healthy,
and tasty meals that will help you build muscle or lose weight, regardless of
your current skills.
Download this report now and learn how to escape the dreadful expe-
rience of “dieting” and how to cook nutritious, delicious meals that make
burning fat or building muscle easy and enjoyable!
Visit http://bit.ly/m-meals to get this report now!

WOULD YOU DO ME A
FAVOR?
Thank you for downloading my book. I hope you enjoyed reading it

and have found it helpful.
I have a small favor to ask. Would you mind taking a minute to write
a blurb on Goodreads about this book? I check all my reviews and love to
get feedback (that's the real pay for my work—knowing that I'm helping
people).
Click here to leave me a review on Goodreads
Also, if you have any friends or family that might enjoy this book,
spread the love and sent it to them!
Now, I don’t just want to sell you books—I want to see you use what
you’ve learned to build the body of your dreams.
As you work toward your goals, however, you’ll probably have ques-
tions or run into some difficulties. I’d like to be able to help you with these,
so let’s connect up! I don’t charge for the help, of course, and I answer ques-
tions from readers every day.
Here’s how we can connect:
Like me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/muscleforlifefitness
Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/muscleforlife
Add me on G+: www.gplus.to/muscleforlife
And last but not least, my website is http://www.muscleforlife.com and
if you want to write me, my email address is mike@muscleforlife.com.
Thanks again, I hope to hear from you, and I wish you the best!
Mike
P.S. Turn to the next page to check out other books of mine that you
might like!
ALSO BY MICHAEL MATTHEWS
Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Male
Body
If you want to be muscular, lean, and strong as quickly as possible, without

steroids, good genetics, or wasting ridiculous amounts of time in the gym,
and money on supplements...then you want to read this book.
Thinner Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate

Female Body
If you want to be toned, lean, and strong as quickly as possible without
crash dieting, “good genetics,” or wasting ridiculous amounts of time in the
gym and money on supplements...regardless of your age... then you want to
read this book.

Cardio Sucks! The Simple Science of Burning Fat Fast and Getting in Shape
If you’re short on time and sick of the same old boring cardio routine and
want to kick your fat loss into high gear by working out less and...heaven
forbid...actually have some fun...then you want to read this new book.
The Shredded Chef: 120 Recipes for Building Muscle, Getting Lean, and
Staying Healthy
If you want to know how to forever escape the dreadful experience of “diet-
ing” and learn how to cook nutritious, delicious meals that make building
muscle and burning fat easy and enjoyable, then you need to read this book.

Awakening Your Inner Genius
If you'd like to know what some of history's greatest thinkers and achievers
can teach you about awakening your inner genius, and how to find, follow,
and fulfill your journey to greatness, then you want to read this book today.
(I'm using a pen name for this book, as well as for a few other projects not
related to health and fitness, but I thought you might enjoy it so I'm includ-
ing it here.)

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12 HEALTH

Cover Designed by: Rocres Aying

Typesetting by Kiersten Lief

Edited by Dominique Chatterjee

Published by: Oculus Publishers, Inc.

Visit the author’s website:

Myth #4: Women should train differently than men 13

Myth #7: Fasting puts your body into “starvation mode” 21

A COUPLE DECADES AGO, THERE wasn’t enough information on

know: MuscleMag, IronMan, Flex, Muscular Development, Muscle & Fitness,

I CAN’T BUILD MUSCLE/LOSE WEIGHT

changing the many little things they were doing wrong.

YOU HAVE TO WORK YOUR

THESE DAYS, HAVING SIX-PACK ABS is basically synonymous with be-

FASTED TRAINING HELPS REDUCE ABDOMINAL FAT

flow in the abdominal region, resulting in more stubborn fat mobilization7.

LIFTING LIGHT WEIGHTS FOR

COMMON “EXPERT” ADVICE FOR PEOPLE who are dieting to lose

WOMEN SHOULD TRAIN

man’s. In one study, post-exercise testosterone levels were 45 times higher in

BENEFITS OF BUILDING MUSCLES

YOU DON’T HAVE TO LIFT

GENERALLY SPEAKING, THERE ARE TWO TYPES of people in the

• Decline of metabolic health21

WHEN DOING CARDIO, YOU WANT

Laval University25, Baylor College of Medicine26, and the University of New

WE’VE ALL HEARD THIS A MILLION TIMES, and it seems to make

FASTING DOESN’T NEGATIVELY AFFECT YOUR METABOLISM

THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF FASTING

IF YOU EAT A LOT OF

THE HYSTERICAL CRUSADE AGAINST the carbohydrate has reached a

CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE AND INSULIN LEVELS

CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE AND REAL-WORLD WEIGHT LOSS

EXCEPTIONS TO THE RULE: WHEN LOW-CARB (OR HIGH-CARB)

WHICH APPROACH DO I USE, THEN? HIGH-CARB OR LOW-

are bloat, gassiness, mental fogginess/inability to focus, sleepiness, and hun-

EAT MANY SMALL MEALS PER

MEAL FREQUENCY AND YOUR METABOLISM

Researchers looked at scores of studies comparing the thermic effect

MEAL FREQUENCY AND APPETITE

HOW MANY MEALS SHOULD I EAT?

YOU CAN’T DRINK

ALCOHOL AND ITS RELATION TO HEALTH and fitness is a tricky sub-

ALCOHOL AND FAT LOSS

weight, not higher63.

ALCOHOL AND TESTOSTERONE LEVELS

ALCOHOL AND MUSCLE RECOVERY AND PERFORMANCE

TO DRINK OR NOT TO DRINK?

DON’T EAT AT NIGHT IF

I DON’T KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I’ve heard an overweight person

WHAT IS ACTUALLY MEANT BY METABOLIC SPEED?

Click here to learn more about this book!

FINALLY! ESCAPE THE HORRORS OF “DIETING” AND

Are you afraid that cooking nutritious, restaurant-quality meals is too

If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, don’t worry—you’re

Visit http://bit.ly/m-meals to get this report now!

Thank you for downloading my book. I hope you enjoyed reading it

If you want to be muscular, lean, and strong as quickly as possible, without

Click here to learn more about this book!