The PERFECT Recipe for Success in Fitness

Our lives are filled with details. No matter how big or little they may be, each detail has the potential to have a massive impact on the outcome - so much so that the difference between something good& something greatis almost always a result of the attention to detail that went into building it.

Now that it is officially fall, let’s talk about something most of us will be having this time of year: PUMPKIN PIE!

There are a ton of details that go into cooking the perfect pumpkin pie. It’s safe to say almost any pumpkin pie is good if the filling has a rich pumpkin taste and the crust is the right mix of tender and flaky.

But what makes a good pumpkin pie ABSOLUTELY PERFECT? Unless you’ve baked one before, you may be surprised to know just how many variables can make or break (literally) your pumpkin pie. A BIG detail: What pumpkin filling will you use? A SMALL detail: What type of pan will you use? (ceramic, metal, glass)… or better yet, When is the right time to pull your pie out of the oven? Too soon and the filling won’t set. Too late and the filling will overcook and crack. All of these details, both BIG and SMALL have a huge impact on the quality of your final product.

Now that we are all thinking about pumpkin-pie, let’s shift the focus back to fitness and all of the details, both big and small, that we need to focus on to yield the best possible result.

Some key factors of any fitness regimen are a challenging workout regimen, consistent and maintainable nutrition habits, and a plethora of healthy lifestyle choices. But what if you are a professional athlete or a top-tier fitness model? Those accolades took some extra attention to detail that we all could learn from. But what are those details? Let’s discuss a few:

Nutrient Timing - Each macro and micro-nutrient plays a role in facilitating your body to perform at its best on any given day. Let’s take caffeine. If you’re like me, you belong to the majority of Americans that have their first dose of caffeine within 1 hour of waking up in the form of coffee. There is nothing inherently wrong with this, but recent studies do show that delaying your initial consumption of caffeine by at least an hour in the morning could help stabilize energy levels throughout the day. This happens by allowing your body’s naturally elevated cortisol levels, which are a result of simply waking up, to normalize prior to introducing caffeine.

This is also a time most of us have our largest dose of caffeine in the day. But wouldn’t it make more sense to save your largest energy jolt for your workout? There are tons of studies that suggest caffeine can improve your focus and endurance during a workout and from years of testing this out myself, I can stand behind this assertion.

So with that being the case, I have my smallest dose of caffeine in the morning hours. I then save my largest dose for the 200 mg of Anhydrous Caffeine that I will ingest in my RIVALUS Powder Burn 2.0 prior to hitting my workout in the afternoon. This has allowed me to increase the intensity of my workouts and really feel the full effects of the caffeine, so I am in beast mode for every gym session.

Nutrient Sourcing - We all know adequate protein consumption has a positive effect on muscle building. But there are so many different types that it can be confusing trying to figure out which type I should use at each point of the day. For example, before I go to bed, I want a protein source that will last for the 7-8 hours I sleep each night, so my muscles are constantly being fed. So which source of protein should I choose?

From my research and trials, I’ve found that casein protein is the best choice to take when you I will fast for many hours at a time. Casein is slow-digesting meaning it takes your body much longer to process and absorb this type of protein. This will help keep your muscles fed when you simply can’t eat, which is why consuming it prior to bed can be a small change with potentially huge benefits. Personally, I add in 1 scoop of RIVALUS Promasil Casein before I hit the hay or even sometimes prior to a time during the day where I know I will have little access to food for an extended period of time. Trust me, this is a littledetail that can separate you from the pack.

Adequate Rest & Recovery - Most of us don’t get enough sleep due to our busy lifestyles, laundry list of things we need to get done each day, and sadly, our devices like TVs, phones and computers that keep us going when we should be decompressing. Even though we all know we need adequate rest, most of us aren’t sleeping enough.

Listen when I say sleep is VITAL to perform at your best. Any basketball fans reading this? You very well know who Lebron James is. What some of you may not know is that the King sleeps for 12 hours each night… I know, sounds like overkill, but you can’t deny that arguably the greatest player to ever walk the court has a system that works for him. The same rules apply for the rest of us: adequate sleep and recovery will yield better athletic results. You may not need to sleep for 12 hours, but sleeping enough to properly rest up, taking periodic off days to avoid burn out, limiting screen time prior to bed… all of these are factors that can enhance your recovery and subsequently improve your fitness performance.

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The list goes on. There are so many details that can separate being good from being great. My advice is to deliver on the fundamentals. Having a sound regimen for all of the large aspects of fitness will set you up for a lifelong fitness journey of success. But if you are really wanting to take your game to the next level, invest extra time towards going above and beyond on your attention to the detail. That’s my recipe. What’s yours?