I remember being 19 years old, it was the first time I had ever watched the film American Psycho. It featured a young Christian Bale and I was blown away at his physique. He looked absolutely remarkable.
It wasn’t so much that he was super big or muscular, that wasn’t it at all. It was something different. He possessed a level of hardness and a level of definition and muscle tone that was so incredibly rare.
He looked strong, defined and chiseled to the bone. This look was different and immediately I knew, I had to have it.
This was the look that turned heads.
It’s no wonder everyone over the years has been talking about the body type of stars like Brad Pitt, Zac Efron, Christian Bale and of course Ryan Reynolds. They are lean and frankly they look amazing.
You see, the key to looking good has less to do with how big and bulky you are and a lot more about your level of definition and hardness.
In this article I’m going to show you how to go from bulky, average and even soft into becoming carved out of steel.
First order of business, we must understand what actually gives you the chiseled and toned look. This has been a misconception for years.
We’ve been told we must do lots of cardio, high reps and circuits to get the lean and toned look. This, my friend, is wrong.
The key to having that hard and chiseled look comes down to having a low body fat combined with dense muscle — in the right places, and of course in the right proportion.
If you get to a low body fat and build dense muscle, you will look really, really freaking good. In fact, it’s impossible you don’t look exceptional if you do those two things.
So, how does one build dense muscle in the right places? Great question!
You may be surprised to find out the answer is getting really, really strong.
You see, there’s two types of muscle growth. Just two!
You have your myofibrillar hypertrophy. This is when your actual muscle fibres become bigger and stronger. This gives your muscles a harder look.
You also have your sarcoplasmic hypertrophy. This is when your body stores more fluid in the muscle. This gives your muscles a puffy and full look.
To build myofibrillar hypertrophy, you want to focus on lifting heavy weights with long rest periods (strength lifting). This builds strength. To build sarcoplasmic hypertrophy you want to focus on lifting lighter weights with short rest periods (pump training). This builds muscular stamina.
If you want to achieve the hard and chiseled look, you want to do most of your training with heavy weights and longer rest periods.
Now, I’m not saying light weights and short rest periods will ruin your physique. It’s simply the icing on the cake. It should be no more than 20% of your training.
If you focus excessively on ‘pump training’ you will have a soft physique. What’s more, you will have to be in the gym for hours everyday to keep your muscles full.
If you take a few days off the gym you will lose your fullness. Contrarily, if you focus on strength lifting, you will build size and maintain size with much less ‘time in the gym’.
Now I know what you’re thinking…
“But Gregory, the strongest guys in my gym, they aren’t chiseled and hard! They are bulky!”
Yes, what has happened is the people that focus on lifting heavy eat way too much. They are so focused on how much they can lift that they eat way too much to get bigger.
They end up gaining excess fat that ruins their physique. This is a mistake. We are not going to do this. In fact, we are going to optimize our eating to get super lean and our training to get super strong.
This will transform your body into a hard, and powerful warrior.
One more thing, most strength based lifters, they forget to focus on the lifts that give them a sleek proportionate look. These include; incline presses, weighted pull ups and shoulder presses. As well, single leg movements like pistol squats and bulgarian split squats.
Later in the article, I’m going to give you a simple workout routine that you can implement for amazing results
Enter Intermittent Fasting
Great, so you’re lifting to get really strong. You’re focusing on key lifts like Incline Bench Press, Weighted Pull ups and Shoulder Press. Fantastic. You’re going to build dense muscle in a proportionate way.
That said, if you don’t get your body fat down to 6-10%, no one will really know. So the question is, how do we get really lean.
There is only one proven way to get lean. That’s to eat less calories than your body burns. In order to do this effortlessly, I recommend using intermittent fasting.
This is where you will not eat any food for the first 4-6 hours of the day. This is your daily fasting window. You will burn fat, boost growth hormone and improve your health (yes fasting is amazing for you).
During the fast you can drink water, carbonated water and black coffee to blunt appetite. I’ll usually have 1-2 scoops of our zero calorie pre workout during my fast too (Kino Octane).
The beauty of fasting is that it will help you optimize your physique. After fasting, you can eat a couple big meals and be in the perfect calorie deficit.
Combined with the right training, the result is you get leaner, stronger and harder. Week after week, you strip off fat and put dense muscle on in the right places.
After 3-6 months of this training and fasting strategy you will look freaking amazing.
How Many Calories?
To ensure you’re able to drop fat every week, without losing muscle, I recommend eating about 12 calories per pound of bodyweight.
So, if you’re 180 lbs, you’re looking at roughly 2200 calories per day (2160 to be exact). This is a very solid number to reach.
You will absolutely be in a calorie deficit, usually just enough to burn off one pound of fat per week. With the right training you will look leaner and harder each and every week.
Warrior-Style Diet (2,200 calories per day):
- Morning through Noon: Water, Sparkling Water, Black Coffee, Zero Calorie Energy Drink
- Meal One (12-3pm): Sirloin Steak, Baked Potato, Veggies, Apple (1000 calories)
- Meal Two (6-8pm): Chicken Tacos with cheese, beans (800 calories)
- Dessert (9-10pm): 400 calories of your favorite dessert (reesecups for me)
Notes
This unbelievably satisfying diet will support the chiseled physique you want. You’re eating plenty of protein from two big meals. You’re eating just enough calories to help support muscle growth and training while still being able to shred off fat. And it’s a damn enjoyable diet.
Combine with the perfect training routine you will see unbelievable results. Which brings me to an awesome workout routine you can perform.
The Warrior Training Program
First order of business, you will be lifting three times per week. Monday, Wednesday and Friday for example. This is the perfect frequency. We will be lifting heavy and hard and if you train more than three times per week, you will deplete your nervous system and your strength gains will stall.
Monday – Chest, Biceps, Rear Delts
- Incline Bench Press: 6-8, 8-10
- Weighted Dips: 6-8, 8-10
- Barbell Curls: 6-8, 8-10
- Cable Rope Hammer Curls: 3 sets of 10-12
- Bent Over Dumbbell Flyes: 3 sets of 10-12
Notes
Perform 2-3 warm up sets for the first three exercises of the workout.
For incline bench, dips and barbell curls – drop the weight by 10-15% for the second set. For dips use total weight (bodyweight plus attached weight). Rest 3 minutes between sets.
For rope hammer curls and bent over dumbbell flyes, use the same weight for all three sets. Rest 1-2 minutes between sets. When you can do the top end of the rep range on all sets, increase the weight the next workout.
Wednesday – Legs
- Front Squats: 6-8, 8-10
- Reverse Barbell Lunges: 6-8, 8-10
- Romanian Deadlifts: 3 sets of 10-15
- Machine Calf Raises: 3 sets of 10-15
Notes
Perform 2-3 warm up sets for the first three exercises of the workout.
For front squats and reverse barbell lunges – drop the weight by 10-15% for the second set. Rest three minutes between sets.
For rope romanian deadlifts and calf raises, use the same weight for all three sets. Rest 2 minutes between sets. When you can do the top end of the rep range on all sets, increase the weight the next workout.
Friday – Shoulders, Back and Triceps
- Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press: 6-8, 8-10
- WeightedPull ups: 6-8, 8-10
- Seated Cable Row: 6-8, 8-10
- Triceps Pushdowns: 3 sets of 10-12
- Dumbbell Lateral Raises: 3 sets of 10-12
Notes
Perform 2-3 warm up sets for the first two exercises of the workout.
For shoulder press, pull ups and rows drop the weight by 10-15% for the second set. For pull ups use total weight (bodyweight plus attached weight). Rest 3 minutes between sets.For push downs and lateral raises, use the same weight for all three sets. Rest 1-2 minutes between sets. When you can do the top end of the rep range on all sets, increase the weight the next workout.
Final Comments
This simple training routine and nutrition plan will give you amazing results. You’ll get stronger, leaner and harder.
If you want to get my full six month system to becoming hard and chiseled like a Warrior. I made the Warrior Shredding Program.
It’s built around building super dense muscle in the right places and getting lean as heck. It shows you the exact fasting and calorie plan to follow. We’ve had 60 000 men go through this program that have gone from soft to chiseled and hard. It’s that powerful.
We are using a strategy known as reverse pyramid training to pack on strength and muscle at the fastest rate. As well, we are using fat loss periods and muscle up periods so after every 3 month block, you are bigger and leaner.
I show you exactly what to do with interactive videos.
Are you ready?
Click here to learn more about the Warrior Shredding Program now.
