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I might as well call this "how I got bigger and stronger." I started StrongLifts 5x5 in March 2009 at age 22 after five years of trying hard to get fit with minimal success. At 5'9", I was 162 pounds (73kg) and unsatisfied.

I'd recently survived a mugging without property loss or injury using attitude and the threat of a pocket knife. I wondered what would have happened if I hadn't had that little blade. I'd also strained my back moving into a new apartment. I never wanted to be targeted again. I never wanted to be so weak that I couldn't move my own property around. I wanted to become Big and Strong. And I wanted to do it in a safe, healthy way using a method that would work for the rest of my life. Your reasons may be different than mine. Either way we share a common goal: getting Big and Strong. My first workout I squatted the bar and felt incredibly sore the next day--trouble walking down the stairs.

Today I'm 194lb (32lb weight gain) at 5'9", can Squat 330lb, Bench Press 265lb and Deadlift 380lb. I only say this so you know I'm not just making this up or regurgitating what I've read. This worked for me. It will work for you.

First off, eliminate from your mind all traditional ideas about diet, nutrition and exercise. Obviously what you've been doing up until today hasn't worked for you. You're not satisfied, otherwise you wouldn't be here wondering how to make changes. If you keep doing the things you've always done, you'll keep getting the same results you've always had. And we don't want that. Got it?

As a chronically weak and underweight man, I've got a few recommendations for you. How to get Big and Strong:

1) Do Stronglifts 5x5. That means barbell training. Squats three times a week. Presses. Bench Press. Deadlifts. Rows. All of those. Add to the bar every workout. Read the ebook before going to the gym. Read all of the links in it. This will take you two hours if you're diligent. Take notes. Practice form. Think about it. Learn it. Know it. Live it. Love it. Do not change it until you stall on squats three times--you'll be squatting over 200 pounds at that point. Do not add exercises. Do not worry about slow growth in your arms. They will grow with time. Believe me. Once you know what it's like to lift real heavy weights you can decide if you want to add a few extra exercises at the end of your workouts.

2) EAT MORE. Aim for 1000 calories/day over what you need to maintain your current weak, flabby frame. If you start getting fat, reduce calories then. For now, do not worry about getting fat. It's not going to happen. When I was 5'9" 162 pounds and pretty weak I started eating 5000 calories a day of whole foods and whole milk and put on muscle without gaining fat.

3) No more weak meals like oatmeal and yogurt. That's what famished yoga instructors eat. If you want to be a Big Strong Man, you have to eat like a Big Strong Man. Each meal you need one SOLID source of protein. Start having 4 eggs for breakfast every day. Seriously. Have some bacon or ham with it too. If you eat grains, make them whole grains. No little kid’s size sandwiches for lunch. You need huge chicken breast + vegetables, greens and olive oil-based salad dressing for lunch. If you have a sandwich, double or triple up that meat.

4) Eat Real Food. Read Michael Pollan's books "In Defense of Food" and "The Ominvore's Dilemma" on this topic. Don't eat anything your great grandmother wouldn't recognize as food. We’re trying to become big, strong and healthy here. Stick to the perimeter of the grocery store. Real food tends to be on the outer edge of the store so that it can be easily kept cool/replaced when it gets old. Don't eat anything that won't eventually rot.

5) Get your nutrients! Eat many fruits and vegetables. One fruit and one vegetable with every meal is good. Take a multivitamin and fish oil with breakfast. I also like a B-complex pill with breakfast. Which other vitamins? I don't know. They're all probably good. Just take some. Maybe they do nothing. Maybe they do a lot. From what I can tell no one really knows. But they certainly won’t hurt. Now that you’re eating more you need to be sure to get enough nutrients. You're probably covered by eating a variety of foods, but taking a couple vitamins is good insurance.

6) Between meals eat something a strong person would eat: walnuts, hard boiled eggs, apples, whey or preferably whole milk.

7) Think of eating as a part of your training. Don't make a distinction. If at least once a week--hopefully on deadlift day--you don't have an epic struggle of you vs. the bar and you vs. the plate of food, you're not training very hard.

8) Drink a lot of water. Juice won’t do much good for you so stick to water and tea. I think beer is OK in moderation. Whole milk is awesome in excess.

9) Macro-nutrient ratios are largely irrelevant unless you're trying to get very very lean (<12%bf). You can do that, but you need to build muscle first. Think of it this way: you don't chisel the marble sculpture until you have a big block of marble to work with. It took me a long time to accept this, but it's true. The only numbers you need to be concerned about are protein and total calories. Total protein should be your goal bodyweight in pounds x 1.5.

10) Consider GOMAD. It REALLY works. It's not as hard to get down or rough on your GI track as you think it might be. If you have trouble digesting milk, try goat's milk. It's easier to digest. Need money for all that food? Cut out other crap in your life or do some odd jobs for neighbors. This could serve as further motivation to get a new, better paying job. Call grandma. Just make it happen.

11) Do not skip a workout because you're sore. Go to the gym anyway. Get warmed up and if you can execute the full range of motion, it's time to lift. I've found the urg (rowing) machine for 1km works best for warming up the whole body. Lifting will help you recover by infusing blood into your muscles. If you absolutely can't do the full range of motion, and therefore can't lift to recover, eat to recover. Leave the gym and go to an all-you-can-eat Mongolian BBQ and make it an epic struggle. Then go to the gym the next day.

12) Drink coffee pre-workout and at least 1 quart (liter) of whole milk post workout. I’ve found a little caffeine really improves my motivation and intensity. Milk is great after working out from a nutritional standpoint, and you'll be thirsty anyway. It does the body good. Again, if you have digestion issues with milk, consider goat's milk. It's sold at Whole Foods in the USA. 1 quart costs less than the 12 oz protein shakes sold at my gym.

13) Get plenty of sleep. This takes real discipline and is impossible sometimes. Trust me, I often work from 7:30 am until 6 pm or later and then go to the gym. Make 8 hours/night the goal. It wont always happen but you have to try.

This will not work if you do not do StrongLifts 5x5 consistently. So do it consistently. Add to the bar every workout. Learn good form. Learn to love lifting. Learn to crave being Big and Strong. Workout with high intensity always. No excuses. Change your life. People will notice. You will notice. You will love it.

If you want to do get Big and Strong, go all the way and do it for real. Don't miss workouts. Don't ever go halfway. Don't make excuses. Make training important to you. It should be because physical strength is one of the most important things in life. You may not realize it now, but once your squat strength goes up--and it will in short order--you'll realize how much better you feel as a strong person. I say this with all sincerity.

Good luck.

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

First, let's put things straight: if you want to build really big arms, then you'll need direct arm work like - yes - biceps curls. There's no way around this.

Second, if you only do heavy compound exercises like Squats, Deadlifts, Presses and Rows, without direct arm work, then your arms will increase in size.

Think about it - do you really believe that if you increase your Squat by 150lbs and gain muscle as a result, that your arms will somehow remain skinny?

As an example, consider StrongLifts Platinum Member Tom (21, USA). When he joined my private coaching program, he was Squatting 145lbs, weighed 130lbs at 5'10" and had 10.6" arms. Today he is well on his way to reach 300lbs on the Squat at 156lbs BW (a 26lbs weight gain so far... in just a few weeks).

What about his arms? From 10.6" to 11.6". A 1 inch gain... without a single curl. Just heavy Squatting, Deadlifting, Pressing and Pulling.

I challenge you to find a non-Squatting curl monkey who achieves the same kind of arm gains in just a few months. Few non-Squatters will ever get anywhere by just doing biceps curl inside the Squat Rack. Even fewer skinny guys understand they can NOT build 18" arms unless they also start eating more.

Before I reveal what the secret is here, I'll tell you what it's NOT: compound exercises like Squats and Deadlifts do not unleash more muscle building hormones than other exercises like Biceps Curls. Research clearly shows that the hormonal response is just too little to make a significant difference.

The real secret here is that heavy Squatters are by definition training at a higher intensity than non-Squatters. Everybody knows that the guy who trains hardest will achieve the biggest gains. Well you can train hard more easily with exercises like the Squat because they allow for heavier weights.

More important: Squat and Deadlifts are challenging. It's the guy who does them, consistently, even though he may not always enjoy it, that develops the strongest mindset. And this is the most valuable asset you can ever gain.

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Few guys understand that pump, soreness, reaching failure and even rep range do NOT matter if you're not getting stronger. Several of my StrongLifts Members gained more muscle their first 5 months on StrongLifts 5x5 than their 5 previous years doing those silly bodybuilding split routines - while training less!

With 2011 coming closer, I ask you - are you lifting more weight today than at the start of 2010? Are you Squatting more than 6 months ago? Has your Deadlift increased? If not: what the hell have you been doing this year?

To gain muscle mass, you need to increase the resistance systematically by simply adding weight to the bar. This - Progressive Loading - is the real secret to raw muscle gains. Here are the 7 other imperatives...

1. Barbells
2. Compounds
3. Food
4. Rest
5. Technique
6. Consistency
7. 80/20 rule

Barbells - natural movements, force you to stabilize the weight yourself, allow for heavier weights than dumbbells, and the only way to Squat/Deadlift heavy.

Compounds - allow for heavier weights than isolation exercises because you're using several muscles at a time, prevent muscle group favoritism.

Food - critical for maximum recovery and growth, eat like a horse first, then get at least 1g/lb of protein per day - and this doesn't need to come from shakes.

Rest - most guys do way too many exercises and train way too frequently, muscle need rest for growth - less is more.

Technique - you can lift more with proper technique and gain more muscle using a full ROM than with partials because the distance the bar travels is longer.

Consistency - expect, on average, 25 pounds of raw muscle gain your first year of training, you got to be consistent, this is a marathon not a sprint.

Next time I'll talk about the 80-20 rule. Make sure you share this post with your friends on facebook so they grasp the concept of gaining raw muscle.

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Before I give you the answer, understand my question. When I ask how much MUSCLE you can gain, I'm not asking how much WEIGHT you can gain. That means I'm not taking into account...

• Fat gains
• Bone gains
• Water weight
• and whatever else

My question is how much PURE muscle gain you can gain in 1 month naturally. All the research says 2lb per month on average. Or 25lb per year if you use an effective training program supported by the right diet. Obviously, your age, genetics, bodytype, training experience, and work ethic will affect your gains.

If you thought you could gain more muscle, you need to stop reading those muscle magazines with their pictures of 260lb drug-using bodybuilders. The average amount of lean muscle you can gain naturally is 2lb/month. And keep in mind that the stronger you get, the harder it is to add muscle to your frame.

This 2lb/month explains why you can NEVER look like those guys on the cover of muscle magazines within 3 months. Aside from the fact that those pictures are photoshopped, muscle growth takes time. Those cover guys train since years and often take drugs - you can't look like them in 3 months. Watch the documentary "Bigger, Stronger, Faster": the interview with Christian Boeving reveals how those cover guys use drugs, not just the supplements they sell.

Tomorrow - how much fat can you lose in 1 month?

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

• This guy is the most influential bodybuilder that ever existed.
• He was a competitive powerlifter for years, deadlifting +700lbs.
• He was also a millionaire by his 30s before becoming a successful actor.

Yes I'm talking about Arnold Schwarzenegger. 150lbs at 6' when he started lifting at age 15. Arnold then built his 7x Mr. Olympia winning physique by doing what his mentor, 3x Mr Universe Reg Park, taught him: build muscle with heavy compound exercises FIRST, worry about fat loss LATER.

Quote from Schwarzenegger's autobiography "The Education of a Bodybuilder"...

Reg Park's theory was that first you have to build the mass and then chisel it down to get the quality; you work on your body the way a sculptor would work on a piece of clay or wood or steel. You rough it out—the more carefully, the more thoroughly, the better— then you start to cut and define. You work it down gradually until it's ready to be rubbed and polished. And that's when you really know about the foundation. Then all the faults of poor early training stand out as hopeless, almost irreparable flaws.

I was building up, bulking, going after the mass, which to me meant 230 pounds of sheer body weight. At that time, I didn't care about my waist or anything else that would give me a symmetrical look. I just wanted to build a gigantic 250-pound body by handling a lot of weight and blasting my muscles. My mind was into looking huge, into being awesome and powerful. I saw it working. My muscles began bursting out all over. And I knew I was on my way.

By age 18, Schwarzenegger weighed 200lbs. And while he admitted using steroids in 1974, Schwarzenegger said he only used them for 2 months before competition, under doctor's supervision and in much lower dosages than is used today. My point: his training got him big, strong and muscular, NOT steroids.

There's another reason why you should build muscle first and lose fat later. You can make a guess in the blog comments, my answer follows tomorrow...

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Then build muscle first. And here's why: a low body fat is useless unless you have muscles to show for. You won't get 6 pack abs by just lowering your body fat, you need to build those abs first with heavy Squats and Deadlifts.

The only exception is if you're extremely obese (+25% fat), like my StrongLifts Member Cleave (44, USA) before he lost 82lbs. Then you should focus on fat loss first (strength training + diet). Otherwise, keep in mind:

• To build muscle you need to gain strength
• To gain strength you need to recover optimally
• To recover optimally you must eat enough calories

That's why you should focus on building muscle first. And that's also why the best bodybuilders that ever existed always focussed on building muscle first. Actual example follows tomorrow. Stay tuned.

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Today I want to show you how snake oil companies try to fool you into buying their stuff by using things like Muscle Memory to make you believe that you can actually build muscle while losing fat even though you can't.

In 1973 Arthur Jones conducted the "Colorado experiment" to prove that his training method worked. Jones was the inventor of the Nautilus equipment that you see everywhere in gyms today. You know, crap like that friggin' Bowflex that I'm telling you NOT to use because it's less effective than free weights.

Casey Viator and the "Colorado Experiment"

2 subjects participated to the Colorado experiment: Arthur Jones himself and the bodybuilder Casey Viator which you can see in the picture above. Both guys used a HIT training method using machines. Here were their muscle gains...

You read that right, Casey Viator gained 63lbs of lean muscle in 28 days. 63lbs. Now you know that I'm all about fast, dramatic gains. After all I gained 45lbs since I got into strength training and so did...

• SL Member Ben gained 25lbs in 25 days and 44lbs in 4 months
• SL Member Gabriel gained 20lbs in 30 days and 44lbs in 11 months
• SL Member Jake gained over 70lbs in just 2 years

BUT I've NEVER seen anyone gain 63lbs pure muscle in 28 days. Even Arthur Jones only gained 15lbs. Why has nobody else ever gained 63lbs that fast? Because it's IMPOSSIBLE. Unless - and here it comes - you're dealing with someone who is a) a genetic freak b) using muscle memory c) on steroids.

Casey Viator was a genetic freak, this guy won his first Mr Universe at age 19. More important to you is that he lost over 30lbs before doing this experiment (he almost died from an allergic reaction to a tetanus injection). So what you're seeing here is a guy who gained 45lbs, but of which over 30lbs is just muscle memory combined with genetics. Some even say Casey Viator used steroids.

So that's actually not so far off the 25lbs that my SL Member Ben gained in 25 days. The reason why Ben gained "less" is that he didn't use steroids; never lifted weights in his life before; and is (like me) definitely not a genetic freak.

Supplement companies fake before/after pictures by paying experienced, drug-using lifters to stop training so they lose muscle and get fat, and then get back in shape quickly using muscle memory (and photoshop).

I always say you got to aim high, and you can definitely build an amazing physique naturally. But you must set realistic expectations about how long this will take you. Check my SL Success Stories for actual and documented examples of the body and strength you can achieve naturally with StrongLifts 5x5.

Tomorrow I’ll continue where I left last time – what should you do if you need to lose fat but also want to build muscle? Stay tuned for my answer.

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Today I want to give you an example of a guy who has gained a massive amount of weight WITHOUT gaining fat - Christian Bale.

You've probably heard that Christian Bale gained 109lbs for "Batman Begins" after losing 63lbs for "The Machinist". Bale went from 121lbs to 230lbs in only 6 months which ended up being MORE than director Christopher Nolan desired. So by the time filming began, Christian Bale had dropped to 190lbs.

Christian Bale: left 121lbs in "The Machinist" (2004). Right 190lbs in "Batman Begins".

How Did Christian Bale Gain 109lbs Weight So Fast? Bale had been lifting weights for at least 5y before he starred in "Batman Begins". Imdb mentions that he went to the gym 6x/week for 3h/day with a personal trainer for his movie "American Psycho" (2000). Check his physique in "Equilibrium" (2002).

Christian Bale. On the left weighing around 185lbs in "Equilibrium" (2002). On the right weighing 121lbs for "The Machinist" (2004).

Newbie gains? No. Freaky genetics? I don't think so. Steroids? Maybe. What you can be sure of: MUSCLE MEMORY. More important: he HAD TO gain weight to get the role, and he had a personal trainer for "Batman Begins".

Do you think you could gain 109lbs in 6 months if you lost 63lbs first? Let's say you've been training for years, your paycheck depends on your results and you have a coach yelling at you in the gym. Could you do it? Of course.

Muscle memory - deadlines - coaching. That's how he gained 109lb so fast.

I shouldn't be telling you this, but the secret behind many of those before/after transformations you see in muscle magazines is this very Muscle Memory. Snake oil companies use it to fool you into buying their worthless supplements. And I'm going to show you an example of that next. Stay tuned.

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

In general, there are only 4 situations where you can build muscle while losing fat WITHOUT creating that caloric deficit that is otherwise crucial for fat loss...

1. You're weak. Strength is directly related to muscle size. If you can't even Squat 225lbs, then you will gain muscle fast by gaining strength on that lift. As a result, your body fat % will decrease and you'll look leaner at the same weight.

This is why so many StrongLifts Members have built muscle while losing fat with StrongLifts 5x5: they gained strength fast, built muscle as a result, and thus their body fat went down. We call this "newbie gains". It's much harder for a guy who has already a foundation of strength to build muscle while losing fat.

2. You've Trained Before. Science is now backing up what lifters have been saying for a long time: it's easier to regain muscle than building it from scratch. If you train, quit for a while, and then resume months/years later, you'll regain muscle faster than you first built it and are more likely to lose fat in the process.

My early mentor once quit lifting. When he resumed years later, I saw him regaining the muscle he had lost within weeks - Muscle Memory. Same with SL Member Ben ("Bluestreak", 30, Australia) who got back into the game recently after a long break: he regained his old body-weight and strength in no time.

3. You're a Genetic Freak. I hate telling you this, but some guys they're just born with a magic metabolism and gain little fat when building muscle. I've seen guys who already had an athletic build without even touching a weight - usually mesomorphs. Not a lot to say about it, it's just how things are.

Off the record: I have anything but great genetics - with my 6.7″ wrists at 5’8″ I fit the "hardgainer" category. I got a small, ectomorph build. Heck, I couldn't even do a single Push-up when I got into all of this.

4. You're Using Steroids. I've trained 5 years in a gym filled with bouncers and saw drug-using lifters eating junk food all day without gaining an ounce of fat. It's how it works. Obviously, these guys couldn't keep their gains off the cycle because they never learned how to train smart and eat right. The result: lack of motivation, inconsistency and yo-yo muscle gains.

You understand why you're unlikely to build muscle WHILE losing fat. But what if you need to lose fat AND want to gain muscle too? What should you do then? Lose fat first OR build muscle? Tell me in the blog comments, my answer follows.

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.

Much of the confusion comes from the fact that there are guys who build muscle while losing fat without that caloric deficit. I admit that I have StrongLifts Members who have done that. One of them is SL Member Rolf (37, Canada) - he has lost fat while his body-weight actually increased. Check out the picture.

SL Member Rolf: Jan 2010 vs. Apr 2010

SL Member Rolf weighed 197lbs in January 2010 right before he found this site. Using StrongLifts 5x5 and the StrongLifts Diet, he gained 3lbs WHILE losing 1,5" waist in 3 months. Clearly: SL Member Rolf gained muscle WHILE losing fat. By the way, Rolf is 37 and had 10y of training before finding StrongLifts.com...

Many StrongLifts Members will tell you that they quickly built muscle WHILE losing fat during their first months on SL5x5. But these are EXCEPTIONS. The rule is that to lose fat, you need a caloric deficit.

• eat more calories than your body burns => gain fat
• eat less calories than your body burns => lose fat

As I've explained using the example of prison guys and Michael Phelps, your training matters more than your diet to build muscle. As long as you give your body the calories it needs for optimal recovery, it doesn’t matter what you eat.

And here lies the problem: the only way you can gain muscle WHILE losing fat is if you lift weights on a caloric deficit. But that's not an optimal for muscle gains because lack of food harms your muscle recovery.

There are only 4 ways you can build muscle while losing fat. Guess which ones in the blog comment section. My answer follows tomorrow.

P.S. My friend Eric Cressey has a new video up today: how to master the Squat. To view this free video, click here now.

STRONGLIFTS BVBA © 2011 All Rights Reserved.