Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Male Body

by Michael Matthews

“tell me, I’ll forget; show me, I’ll remember; involve me, I’ll understand.”

Omg it’s dads email quote!

Self-care is meant to be a sojourn, not hearth and home.

You can miss a workout or two or five because of injury, travel, or reasons best known to the Dread Lord Cthulhu without wrecking it. In short, you can fail over and over in fitness and still succeed.

The desire itself causes the stress, like an emotional stick compelling us to obey. Our brain doesn’t give a damn about the bigger picture, either. It cares nothing about how we’ll feel when we’re twenty pounds heavier or a few hundred dollars poorer—it simply identifies sources of pleasure and then raises hell until we give in, even if pursuing those promises will entail risky, chaotic behavior likely to cause more problems than they’re worth.

when we consider our neurons, overtargeted and overstimulated by the incessant and inescapable calls for consumption, it’s no surprise that the average person is an overweight procrastinator hooked on junk food, entertainment, and social media.

Remember—Future You isn’t some abstraction whose emotions and desires will be radically different from Present You. When tomorrow comes, you’ll likely find yourself in a similar state of mind, and thus, you’ll likely respond in a similar way. This is why we can all benefit from improving our ability to connect our present actions with their future consequences.

All too often, people use weight loss progress as an excuse to loosen the dietary reins and hinder further progress.

we should avoid getting into the habit of flattering ourselves for all the work we’ve done. Instead, we should view our wins as evidence of how important our goals are to us and how committed we are to seeing them through.

1. Calculate your calories and macros.