Body Composition Basics: Table of Contents

Every recipe has a rationale. The rationales for the recipes I use to lose fat and build muscle revolve around supply, stimulation, and signaling.

  • Supply: what you feed your body
  • Stimulation: what you do with your body
  • Signaling: what the lizard inside of you commands

Of the three, signaling is most important. You can’t consciously trigger fat loss or muscle growth. If you could, you wouldn’t need to go to the gym. You’d be able to say, “Go Go Gadget Gains!” and six-pack abs would appear. This isn’t how it works.

The lizard inside of you determines what will be done in any given circumstance. You can do everything within your power to build muscle and lose fat, but if the lizard doesn’t comply, you’ll stay skinny and sloppy. Unfortunately, you can’t directly change signaling (unless you take steroids or similar drugs). You can only nudge signaling, indirectly, with stimulation and supply.

Here’s how:

Stimulating and supplying for fat loss is almost identical to stimulating and supplying for muscle growth. There’s only one tiny difference.

  • Fat loss: supply less energy
  • Muscle growth: supply more energy

And so, with this in mind, I suppose uncovering the energetic aspect of our existence isn’t a bad place to start.

(Everything else stays the same.

This is everything else:


Part 1: The relationship between energy supply, energy demand, and energy reserves. Alternative headline: “This is why you’re fat.” ALT: SUPPLY: ENERGY

Read Part 1

Part 2: Survival signaling and supergravity stimulation. Alternative headline: “Lift weights, you dummy.”

Read Part 2

Part 3: The dial determining the direction of your body composition. Alternative headline: “Food.”

Read Part 3

Part 4: Concluding thoughts…

Coming soon…