Man 2.0 Engineering the Alpha (51 page)

 

 B3 
Plank
Hold for 60 seconds

 

This circuit consists of three exercises performed lactic-acid style at a tempo of 4-0-1 for 8–12 reps each, a total of 3 times. Select a weight appropriate for each exercise (often, different weights each circuit). Tempo does not factor in for the plank. Simply hold for 60 seconds.

Perform exercises B1–B3 sequentially, resting 10–30 seconds between exercises. After B3, rest 90 seconds and repeat. After your last circuit, rest 2 minutes and proceed to workout set C.

 C1 
Lateral Raise
12 reps

 C2 
Alpha Deadlift
8 reps

 

This circuit consists of two exercises performed at a tempo of 4-0-1 for 8–12 reps each, a total of 4 times. Select a weight appropriate for each exercise (often, different weights each circuit). Perform exercises C1–C2 sequentially, resting 10 seconds between exercises. After C2, rest 90 seconds and repeat. After your last set, rest 2 minutes and proceed to workout set D.

 D 
Rack Pull from the Knee
25 reps

 

This is
not
a lactic acid–based exercise. This is a 25-rep set done at a steady tempo. Use 20 to 30 percent of the weight you used for workout set A.

 

PHASE III, WORKOUT 4

 A 
Alpha Deadlift
20 reps

This is
not
a lactic acid–based exercise. This is a 20-rep set done at a steady tempo with challenging weight. After this set, rest 2–3 minutes and proceed to workout set B.

 B1 
Bent-Over Row
10 reps

May use assisted pull-ups or any variation of pull-downs, including resistance bands.

 B2 
Low-Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
10 reps

  Set an adjustable bench to an incline of 15 to 30 degrees.

  Grab a pair of dumbbells and lie faceup on the bench. Hold the dumbbells directly above your shoulders with your arms straight and your palms facing forward.

  Lower the dumbbells to the sides of your chest, pause, and then press the weights back above your chest.

 

 B3 
Feet-Elevated Plank
45 seconds

Tempo does not factor in here, simply hold for 45 seconds.

This is
not
a lactic acid–based exercise. This circuit consists of three exercises performed 10 reps each at a steady tempo a total of 4 times. Select a weight appropriate for each exercise (often, different weights each circuit). Perform exercises B1–B3 sequentially, resting 10–30 seconds between exercises. After B3, rest 60 seconds and repeat. After your last circuit, rest 2 minutes and proceed to workout set C.

 C1 
Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly
12 reps

 C2 
Body-Weight Glute Bridge
15 reps

 

These two exercises are performed lactic-acid style at a tempo of 3-0-1 for 12–15 reps each, a total of 5 times. Select a weight appropriate for each exercise (often, different weights each circuit). Perform exercises C1–C2 sequentially, resting 10 seconds between exercises. After C2, rest 90 seconds and repeat. After your last set, rest 2 minutes and proceed to workout set D.

 D 
Alpha Deadlifts
25 reps

This is
not
a lactic acid–based exercise. This is a 25-rep set done with light weight. Use 20 to 30 percent of the weight you used for workout set A.

CHAPTER 12

Phase IV: Complete

THE END OF THE BEGINNING

“A man who as a physical being is always turned toward the outside, thinking that his happiness lies outside him, finally turns inward and discovers that the source is within him.”

—
SÖREN KIERKEGAARD

S
ome fitness programs fizzle out.
Others just end. We made it a point to make sure that when you finish this workout and diet, you'll feel complete. This isn't about reaching an end goal. This is more about
complete
satisfaction with the changes you hoped to make and the improvements you've always wanted.

Complete is a four-week phase designed to help you become the hero in your journey; it is the last aspect of engineering you into the Alpha you were meant to be, helping you polish off your physique so you look and feel better than ever.

In many ways, we consider Phase IV to be the all-star program. And since by now you know just how truly nerdy we are, you won't be at all surprised that we'll compare this phase to superheroes.

In comic books, superheroes often gather into groups or teams; from the X-Men to the Fantastic 4, the Justice League to the Avengers, heroes recognize that in order to save the world, you need various skill sets. In order to write compelling story lines, comic book authors realize that having superheroes work together in a way that allows their powers to complement one another creates a unit whose value is greater than the sum of its parts.

Well, in Phase IV, we want to recreate that with a comprehensive approach to all the phases you've already experienced.

In the previous phases, we've focused on specific hormones and the modality to address each: insulin and metabolic resistance training, testosterone and density training, GH and GH-surge training. All of these things helped you lose fat, build muscle, or gain strength. And sometimes you experienced multiple benefits at the same time as a result of hard training, improved diet, and better hormone functioning.

Now that we have developed each of those qualities, it's time to teach your body to develop them together. Just as any superhero team—or any team, for that matter—has to train together for a while in order to develop a rhythm and become effective together, so too must your training encompass all of the various qualities at once.

By working through Phase IV, you will finish the program with your insulin sensitivity as high as it was in Prime, your body as lean as you were in Adapt, and your muscles as strong as they were in Surge. In fact, you'll likely burn off any extra fat that you may have, increase muscle in some key areas, and even get a bit stronger.

In order to accomplish this, Complete combines one day of fat-loss training, one day of density-based training, one day of muscle building, and one day of strength work.

This phase lasts four weeks and, again, is intended to help you finalize your physique and set you up to dominate any program you decide to do after you achieve Alpha status.

 

COMPLETE: THE DIET

Determine Your Daily Caloric Intake During Complete

Before you can do this, you once again need to determine your maintenance calories. This is done in precisely the same manner as in Prime and Adapt and Surge. As always, before you go any farther, please check your weight and get your body fat retested, and from there determine your new maintenance calories.

Done? Great. Let's move on to your daily calories. As with Surge, you're going to be eating
above
maintenance calories on workout days and below maintenance calories on non-workout days during Complete.

 

 
To determine your calories for workout days, add 300 to your daily calories.

 
To determine your calories for non-workout days, subtract 400.

 

In this phase, we are decreasing the surplus on workout days, and increasing the deficit on non-workout days. In this phase, we'll be taking in fewer calories and pairing the diet with a training modality specifically intended to increase GH—that, coupled with the volume, will lead to tremendous growth.

 

MACRONUTRIENT BREAKDOWN

Protein

Once again, protein consumption is determined by your lean body mass, but it's higher during this phase. Protein intake will be set as follows:

 

 
Workout days:
1.5 grams of protein per pound of LBM

 
Non-workout days:
1 gram of protein per pound of LBM

 

Carbs

 

 
Workout days:
1 gram of carbs per pound of LBM

 
Non-workout days:
0.25 grams of carbs per pound of LBM

 

Fat

At this point, you know your maintenance calories and have subtracted the caloric values of both your protein and carb intakes. Now, you still have a balance of a few hundred calories; these will come from fat—and yes, that generally equates to a lot of fat. But, as you know by now, if you're getting healthy fats, you're taking another step on the path toward hormonal optimization.

Now, as fat has 9 calories per gram, take your remaining balance of calories and divide by 9. The result is how many grams of fat you'll eat.

 

THE ALPHA EATING EQUATION: COMPLETE

Workout Days

Going through the steps, it would look like this:

 

1. Using the information in the chart on page 169, figure out how many calories you need in order to maintain your body weight.

2. Add 300 to that number.
Now we've got your calories for workout days.

3.
Multiply your lean body mass by 1.5.
This number represents how much protein you should eat.

4.
Multiply your lean body mass by 1.
This number represents how many carbs you should eat.

5.
Take your total grams of protein and your total grams of carbs, and add them together.

6. Multiply that number by 4.
This gives you the total number of calories from protein and carbs.

7.
Subtract this number from your calories for workout days.
This number is how many calories from fat you need.

8.
Divide this number by 9.
This is how many grams of fat you need.

 

Non-Workout Days

1. Using the information in the chart on page 169, figure out how many calories you need in order to maintain your body weight.

2. Subtract 400 from that number.
Now we've got your calories for non-workout days.

3.
Multiply your lean body mass by 1.
This number represents how much protein you should eat.

4. Multiply your lean body mass by 0.25.
This number represents how many carbs you should eat.

5.
Take your total grams of protein and your total grams of carbs, and add them together.

6. Multiply that number by 4.
This gives you the total number of calories from protein and carbs.

7. Subtract this number from your calories for non-workout days.
This number is how many calories from fat you need.

8. Divide this number by 9.
This is how many grams of fat you need.