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Hey Legacy Lifters,

Welcome to this week's edition of The Standard: The Disciplined Road To Building Stronger Kingdom Men.

It's not enough to wait until the time is right to start getting ready.

If you wait to get ready, it might be too late when your opportunity comes.

The standard is to stay ready: physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Below you'll see this covered across the physical - mental - spiritual pillars below as BUILD - RENEW - TRANSFORM.

Neither one is enough on its own. Yet it's also impossible to have one without the other.

If you're ready to stretch yourself to a higher standard, stick around to answer that call alongside other growth minded men looking to get physically, mentally, and spiritually fit.

All it takes is one decision to change the future for yourself and your family.

Read it. Pick one thing that resonates. And go take action on it ⬇️

💪 BUILD [3 Day Workout Protocols]

What Are The Best Programs To Build Strong and Lean Muscle When You're Short On Time?

If you want to be the best version of yourself, then you simply cannot neglect strength training.

It will make you stronger, healthier, improve your body composition, and make you better both right now and for years to come.

I spent the first 15 years of my training career thinking that more was better.

Basically if you were only working out 3 days per week I thought you were weak sauce.

Why workout 3 days per week when you could do 5 or 6 days?

I thought the only way to get the physique and strength benefits was at 5 days (or more) per week.

I completely missed the mark on this.

I'm thankful for wisdom that God has given me with time and experience.

I've wrote about my unhealthy approach to health and fitness before, but I never even imagined that my results could be as good (or better) working out only 3 times per week.

Today, I won't be going in-depth with all the reasons I believe working out 3 times per week is actually optimal for most people.

Instead I want to get really practical and give you some of the best 3 day per workout programs that you can follow.

If your goal is building lean muscle, looking better, improving strength, and feeling your best - then try out one of these workout programs below:

1) Stronglifts 5x5

5x5 is a classic. Many men have transformed their strength and their bodies through this simple program.

This is one of those programs that cuts out all the fluff and focuses on the foundations.

You'll squat. You'll bench. You'll overhead press. You'll row. And you'll deadlift.

That's about it, with some optional assistance work at the end of the session (that you probably won't even need)

There are only 2 workouts in this program, each with 3 main lifts.

If you love the barbell (or want to learn how to love the barbell), and you're looking for an extremely simple but effective approach, this might be the program for you.

Pros:

• Focuses on only the essential lifts that maximize results
• Allows for lots of practice and repetition at the core lifts
• About as simple as it gets. If you want a program you don't have to think much about, this one is great.

Cons:

• Lacks variety. If you get bored easily, you probably won't stick with this one long enough to see results.
• Missing important accessory work if your goal is general health, athleticism, or physique.
• It can be hard on your nervous system, and might not be great if you're really busy or stressed. Doing 5 sets of 5 every single workout on squats can wear you down if your sleep and recovery isn't on point.

2) Push/Pull/Legs

Another classic program is the push/pull/legs routine.

This program can be adapted to more or less training days per week based on your schedule.

One day you'll do push exercises that primarily target your chest, shoulders, triceps.

One day you'll do pull exercises that primarily target your back and biceps.

One day you'll do leg exercises that primarily target...you guessed it...your legs (quads, hamstrings, calves).

This is a great option for those that are looking for a great balanced program.

Pros:

• Focuses on compound movements that target all major muscle groups throughout the week
• Can be adopted to fit your schedule

Cons:

• Training muscle groups only one time weekly may not be enough for you
• Might require longer workouts to make sure you're getting enough volume and intensity to make change

3) Inside Out RPT Protocol

This is the program myself and the majority of my clients follow.

The link above will give you a sample program similar to the one I've been following for over 2 years at this point now.

Myself and clients have seen great transformation on this program.

This program focuses on:

1. Reverse Pyramid Training (RPT) Principles: This is the most effective approach I've found for maximizing both strength and hypertrophy (muscle growth) simultaneously
2. Full Body Workouts: Each workout involves compound movements that target multiple major muscle groups. This means that you're directly (and indirectly) stimulating every muscle group at every workout, which is essential if you're short on time
3. Powerbuilding Focus: This program is designed to get the best of both the powerlifting and bodybuilding worlds. Combining powerlifting and bodybuilding movements and rep ranges will transform your physique in a unique way

If you're looking for a complete program that focuses on both strength and physique, then this is the program for you.

Pros:

• Combines powerlifting and bodybuilding principles
• A great program to combine with a fat burning protocol
• All workouts are designed to be completed in less than an hour

Cons:

• Training legs multiple times per week can be taxing on your body and your recovery
• If your goal is building maximum strength, this program is biased more towards physique through slightly higher rep ranges

🧠 RENEW [Power Promise]

How Brushing Your Teeth Can Help You Lose Weight?

I want to highlight the power of incredibly small actions and habits.

Too often people focus on the big habits or big actions at the expense of the small habits that compound over time.

I've written many times about the importance of small habits to create positive change.

But today I want to talk about how certain tiny habits or actions can send you into a negative cascade of self-destructive tendencies.

I was first introduced to the concept of a power promise several years ago on an Ed Mylett Podcast with Chris and Heidi Powell.

While I may not agree with the Powell's approach to fitness (or life), this concept of a power promise has stuck with me.

When I first heard it - it just made sense to me. Because I saw it play out many times in my own life.

They define a power promise as 'a single, simple, attainable commitment that you know you can keep every day'

For those that don't know, the Powell's were famous for their extreme weight loss TV show, where they would help people obese individuals lose hundreds of pounds.

What you also might not know, is that almost every single one of those individuals (if not all of them) gained all that weight back, and usually more.

While there are several reasons I believe that leads to that, they contributed the power promise as something that can lead to that downward spiral.

Basically, they said that gaining back 10, 20, 50, or 100+ more pounds can be traced back to a single broken power promise.

Some incredibly small compromise they made to themselves that led to negative action after negative action.

This could be something so simple that you don't even realize the consequences that can follow.

While you might not be in danger of gaining back hundreds of pounds - you might be making small compromises that lead to negative actions.

Maybe your small compromises lead to yo-yo dieting or missed workouts.

Maybe it leads to you losing, and then gaining back, the same 10-20 pounds over and over and over again.

What the power promise really comes back to, as I've seen it play out in my own life, is a lack of honor and respect for myself.

Here are some examples of 'power promises' I've personally noticed:

• Reading God's word and prayer
• Brushing my teeth
• Showering/shaving/putting on fresh clothes/cleaning myself up
• Taking a walk or moving my body
• Getting outside/seeing the sun (especially early in the day)
• Giving my wife and kids a hug and telling them I love them
• Avoiding sugar early in the day
• Not snoozing my alarm
• Avoiding phone use for the first 30+ minutes of my day

All of these things, when performed, don't transform my health or my life overnight.

But any of these things, when not done consistently, or sometimes not even done one time, can lead to a negative snowball of actions.

It sounds crazy, but if I don't want to snack after dinner, brushing my teeth knocks that craving away >90% of the time.

Not snoozing my alarm or checking my phone in the morning makes me incredibly more peaceful and productive

If you start paying attention you might start noticing some of your own power promises.

What are the small compromises you make that lead to a negative spiral?

What are the little areas of self-care or self-respect you can perform consistently to build positive momentum?

⚔️ TRANSFORM [Seven Times]

Are You Giving Up Too Soon?

My wife and I have been reflecting recently on how many times we've given up too soon after being convinced we were doing the right thing.

How many times we might have stopped short of our 'miracle' we were believing for.

I believe God still speaks. And I believe He's given all of us words, dreams, and visions for our lives.

But just because He speaks a word doesn't mean it will automatically come to pass.

He moves on our faith, action, and obedience.

I was reading this week in 1 Kings.

In chapter 17, Elijah declared their would be a great drought in the land for several years.

Several years later, after some crazy events you can read about between chapters 17 and 18, it was time for the Lord to bring rain back to the land:

And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain.” So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.

 “Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. And he went up and looked.

“There is nothing there,” he said.

Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”

The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.”

So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’”

Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain started falling and Ahab rode off to Jezreel. 

What do you think Elijah's servant was thinking after going to check for rain 4, 5, and 6 times?

Remember, it hasn't rained for several years at this point.

If I was the servant, I would be having some doubts about if the rain was coming.

I would probably be getting a little frustrated that he kept telling me to go look and see if the rain was coming.

I would probably be pretty close to giving up.

What is it in your life that you've given up on after a few tries?

What were you once so confident in - maybe even something you heard from God - that you've gotten discouraged in after trying 4...5...6 times?

Are you willing to try a 7th time if that's what it takes? Are you willing to try a 37th time?

I can look back at several times throughout our lives where I felt we've given up too soon.

The good news?

It's not too late.

It's not too late to pursue a new dream or desire.

And it's not even too late to go back to the same dream or desire you had long ago, that maybe you gave up on too soon.

Commit to not being discouraged this time around.

You might try again over and over and see no evidence of rain.

But one of these times, you'll see 'A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.'

It might start small. It might seem insignificant.

But don't doubt what God can do with a little bit of faith and action.

Be The Standard,

Dave