Mission Possible

Gain 10 lbs of Lean Muscle Mass!

The order is received and understood. You have been tasked to find weapons of mass construction that will enable you to gain 5-10 pounds of lean mass in the next year.

Many questions circulate through your mind as the order is read. Do they really exist? How do I find them? Where do I begin? What happens should I fail?

To begin your quest, you decide it's time to conduct intelligence gathering to help focus on the specific areas that will help you to meet the objective. In addition, the data captured will help you determine how you will arm yourself properly so that you are able match or exceed any force that attempts to derail you from your objective.

You will develop a plan that will include all strategic objectives or missions that will lead to the ultimate goal you seek. Before hopping into your all-terrain SUV and heading off to battle, you prepare and pack all essential items that are available to you.

Mission 1:
Grocery Store Assault.

A grocery list is the most important item of all. It is necessary so that your dry land assault on the local grocery store is quick, lethal, yet directed. The list is designed around a strategy that ensures a successful campaign with minimal casualties. It will guide you through the perils of temptation that will be undoubtedly encountered along the way.

As you prepare the list, you reflect on the intelligence you gathered from previous visits. In accordance with gathered facts, the list is constructed in a way that only the aisles and sections that must be traveled are clearly identified.

In order, you list:

1. The dairy,

2. frozen food,

3. meat,

4. bread,

5. cereal,

6. water, and

7. vegetable/fruit aisles.

To avoid wasted time or effort, you detail the specific items that will be sought and captured. For this mission, your goal is to capture the following items.

1 dozen eggs, 4 containers egg whites, five 1 lb. packages of 96% lean ground beef, 1 loaf whole wheat bread, 1 container oatmeal, 1 bottle honey, 2 large packages broccoli cuts, 5 medium sweet potatoes, and 1 lb. almonds.

As you develop the list, you perform a mental walk-thru to confirm the steps to be followed. As you do, you remember one critical detail that was overlooked. Water! 5 gallons and twelve 1-liter bottles of water are added to the list after egg whites. Having the list fully defined, the "go" is given from high command to deploy. So you do.

You barrel into the store parking lot and leap from your SUV armed to the teeth with your list gripped tightly in hand. You take the most direct route into the store and capture and acquire the nearest cart. Cart and list in hand, you begin to advance and follow your developed plan.

To your amazement, the mission progresses smoother than anticipated until you encounter the bakery section while in route to the fruits and vegetables. Your initial reaction is to retreat, regroup, and attempt a flanking maneuver. However, your better judgment determines that a direct assault will prove most effective and less costly overall.

So you charge through to the fruits and vegetables and realize that your decision was correct. You accomplish your final objective and captured all items on your list without loss. You quickly exit the store and head back to your SUV and prepare for your next mission, The Gym Assault.

Mission 2:
The Gym Assault.

Given a successful grocery store campaign, your next mission will be another dry land assault on the local gym. Again, a quick and directed assault is critical for success. Time will be limited and must be constrained or the risk of loss increases greatly. To prepare, a plan is constructed that details the exact routine and reps, as well as the equipment to be used.

The plan will provide the necessary information to arm you with the essential accessories needed to accomplish the objective and nothing more. Today will be a full body day and limited to 1 hour and 15 minutes. Therefore, wrist straps (for planned back work) and boxing gloves (for heavy bag work) are added to gym bag contents.

Specifically, the 1st hour of the full body workout will consist of:

Chest (3 sets each of barbell incline and flat bench work)
Shoulders (3 sets each of front barbell military press and dumbbell press)
Back (3 sets each of barbell rows and seated cable rows)
Legs (3 sets each of barbell and hack machine squats)
Calves (do as many reps as possible for 5 minutes on your favorite calf machine).

Two warm-up sets will precede each exercise. All final sets will use maximum weight where only 5-8 reps are possible. For the final 10 minutes, heavy bag work will conclude the mission. As the battle begins, your mind becomes intensely focused on the current objective at hand.

Sample Full Body Workout

• Barbell Incline Presses, 5 sets x 5-8 reps (first 2 sets are warmup)

• Flat Bench Presses, 5 x 5-8

• Front Barbell Military Presses, 5 x 5-8

• Dumbbell Presses, 5 x 5-8

• Barbell Rows, 5 x 5-8

• Seated Cable Rows, 5 x 5-8

• Barbell Squats, 5 x 5-8

• Machine Hack Squats, 5 x 5-8

• Calf Machine, 5 minutes

• Heavy Bag Work (see below), 10 minutes

No thoughts or consideration should be made on any future objectives. The current task at hand should literally consume your thoughts. Each rep and set is met with profound resistance; however, you continue to advance. Set by set, repetition by repetition you continue towards your ultimate goal.

As you take periodic and brief breaks between engagements, you remember to take sips from your canteen. After the first hour is over and you realize you have depleted energy levels and you must decide to press forward to your final encounter or retreat and wait for reinforcements.

After a brief moment of thought and reflection, you conclude that the majority of the resistance is over and a 10-minute heavy bag assault can be completed with remaining ammunition and a surprise attack is your intent. You arm yourself and don your gloves and head for the bag.

Post-Gym:
     Meal 2

Following the destructive gym assault, the trauma that results can be detrimental to the achievement of the objective. Therefore, timely access and use of proper foods and supplementation can greatly reduce and negate the destructive impacts of a gym assault and stimulate healing.

Within the 1st hour following the gym assault, it is imperative that a 2nd daily meal high in calories and carbohydrates is ingested. Since you are likely you to be mobile, you must make sure that meal two is easily prepared and can be quickly ingested.

Therefore, 2 servings of dry oatmeal sprinkled with a serving of your favorite protein powder (vanilla) and 5 grams L-glutamine and topped with honey provides the nutrients your body requires in order to begin recovering from the post-traumatic gym disorder you will experience

Rest Of Intake:
     Meals 3-6

Two to three hours after the 2nd daily meal, it's suggested that a 3rd daily meal is ingested that provides your body with additional nutrients that will stimulate the additional growth and healing that will prepare you for future assaults. 8 ounces cooked ground beef between two slices of whole wheat bread with condiments (lettuce, mustard and ketchup) is a good option.

Simply put, eat a lean hamburger! Also, add 1 medium baked sweet potato and 1 cup broccoli to the 3rd daily meal to recovery. The 4th daily meal should consist of 1.5 oz. almonds or cashews (your choice). For the 5th daily meal, repeat the 3rd daily meal but drop the potato and add a cup of broccoli.

Finally, the 6th daily meal will be the same as the 1st daily meal with 5 grams L-glutamine or it can be the same as the 2nd daily meal, too, but with cooked oatmeal and adding 5 grams L-glutamine but without the honey. It is important to have your foods and supplements prepared in advance.

This will ensure that food and supplementation are always on hand when the order comes and you will avoid being caught in a situation where you cannot re-fuel properly or the fuel you acquired is insufficient. A well-defined diet and supplementation strategy is meaningless without proper water intake. That leads to your next mission: water intake.

Mission 4:
Water Intake.

No mission will succeed without a sufficient supply of water. Drinking a gallon of water daily will ensure that peak energy levels can be achieved during each mission. The body relies heavily on water. There is a direct correlation between your water intake and your energy levels and cognitive functioning

WATER INTAKE CALCULATOR

To make it most convenient, storing water bottles in the all-terrain SUV will allow easy access and, in the winter months, it will stay cold. To maintain adequate hydration it will be necessary to take time to sip water before, during, and after each mission. As specified in (but not limited to) the Gym Assault, it is imperative that water intake occurs frequently and continuously.

Water will also help with the removal of impurities from the body. If necessary, and to help make water intake a more enjoyable experience, try mixing sugar-free Crystal Light (on-the-go packets) in your 1 liter bottles. Or, try mixing real lemon into your water bottle with a packet of Splenda for inexpensive and convenient lemonade.

With your water intake mission accomplished, the next mission is R&R.

Mission 5:
Rest & Relaxation.

If, by chance, you have survived all previous missions, you will do your mind and body much good by taking time to rest and relax. To facilitate rest and relaxation, you should begin with a warm shower.

A warm shower not only feels good, it helps relax tense muscles and promotes circulation that will deliver much-needed nutrients throughout the body. After a warm shower, you will next perform full body stretching.

The goal is to stretch as many muscles as possible in order to increase flexibility, reduce the chance of injury, keep the muscle pliable, and enhance your muscle growth potential by increasing muscle length or surface area to provide for growth opportunity.

If possible and following stretching, a deep tissue massage is a great chance to work out calcium deposits that, during your destructive gym assault, caused tears to the epimysium which is a protective sheaths that surrounds the muscle. These tears are common during gym assaults.

Remember to drink plenty of water to assist the movement of impurities from the body following your massage.

To conclude this final mission and if you're old enough, a glass of wine (or two), and head straight to bed for at least 8 hours of shut eye before the next day's 4 a.m. battle.

Mission Accomplished

There you have it - the path to a successful campaign begins with a well-thought plan! In order to realize any plan, "action" is necessary. To ensure that any action taken is fruitful, you must prepare! Defining the appropriate weapons of mass construction is mostly an individual decision. There are far too many weapons available.

The ones mentioned herein are only a tip of the iceberg. The only way to know what works is to engage and execute. Engagement will certainly show you what works and what doesn't. The goal then is to minimize your loss at all costs. As any warrior knows, no battle can be achieved without sacrifice.

Now it's your turn. Your road to victory begins now. Get off your candy @$$ (you know what) and get in the battle. We need you in the line with the rest of us and the war cannot be won without coordinated efforts. So, communicate your success to others and share your knowledge. I salute you!

Well, I'm back and ready to begin another season. This year I plan to make some noise so keep a watchful eye on the World Natural Bodybuilding Federation (WNBF) Professional stage!

Natural Bodybuilding at its Finest - Lift for Life.com