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The High Performance Journal - April 9th, 2024

I've been a coach for the past 20 years. I've lost count but I've probably helped tens of thousands of clients get their bodies lean and healthy.

If I wanted to get someone in shape for the summer I'd consider 90 days to be the perfect timeframe to make it happen.

While it may not seem like a lot you can do a ton of damage within that short amount of time.

I've seen some clients get amazing results in less:

 

Yes, that is 40 lbs of weight loss in less than 90 days 🤯

And I get it. All we want is to live a healthy and energetic life for ​as long as possible​.

But let's be honest too...

There's a part of us that wants to look really really ridiculously good looking in our bathing suits.

 

If you're old enough to remember Zoolander we can be friends

While the best time to start was January the next best time to get your body lean for the summer is now.

So in today's article, I want to share with you a step-by-step blueprint to get in shape for the summertime.

If your goal is to get a "beach ready" body this is for you.

Note: If you're already in shape then congrats. I'll have something special for you next week that will be focused on optimizing your health and longevity. If that's not you then keep reading.

Step 1 - Create Your Body Dashboard

If you want to see results you need to track 3 things:

1. Your weight
2. Your inches
3. Pictures

I call this the Progress Triangle.

You can’t rely too much on just weighing yourself because it’s only one unit of measure. It’s like looking at the health of a business but only looking top line revenue.

What you’ll find is that sometimes weight will go stagnant but your inches drop. Or both go stagnant but your pictures and clothing show progress.

You want to track these 3 on the regular to get a clear picture of your overall progress.

If it were me or a client I would weigh 3-7 times a week getting a weekly average of my weight.

I would measure my chest, waist, and hip inches every Friday. I'd do pictures every 4 weeks.

Lastly, this is optional but I would get a DEXA scan and do bloodwork in the beginning to get a clear picture of my progress both inside and out.

Step 2 - Eat The Right Foods At The Right Times

There are 3 major things we want to do with our nutrition:

1. Eat the right amount of food to get lean.
2. Eat the right quality of food to regulate hormones, energy, and appetite.
3. Eat at similar times to put your hunger on a schedule.

To eat the right amount use this 2-minute macro setup. Take your body weight and multiply it...

• By 8 if you have 40+ pounds to lose
• By 9 if you have 20 to 40 pounds to lose
• By 10 if you have 20 or less pounds to lose

That will determine how many calories you have to eat.

Aim to get .8 to 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight because this is crucial to keeping muscle, feeling fuller, and burning fat.

To eat the right quality get 80-90% of your calories from single ingredient nutrient-dense sources​.

To find the right meal schedule for you I recommend following your ​circadian rhythm of eating​, which means aligning your eating schedule with your circadian rhythms.

An example would be my meal schedule:

7:30am - Double scoop protein shake with a greens powder, creatine, and tablespoon of psyllium husk. 12pm - Lunch with carbs and at least 40 grams of protein. Last one was a protein spaghetti meal I got from my meal prep service. 5pm - Dinner with a big piece of meat or fish, vegetables, and a single-ingredient carb source.

Here's an example of what a dinner looks like. This will differ for you based on dietary preferences:

I'm at 5'11 around 178 lbs and this helps me hit 1800’ish calories with 175 grams of protein every day.

There are some other things I do with my nutrition. I'll note them down near the end of the article so keep reading.

Step 3 - Do Some Form Of Lifting 3x A Week.

The goal is to lose fat, not muscle. This is why we prioritize eating protein and strength training.

Due to their schedules, my clients don't have much time to workout so we use a workout I call ​Strength Circuits​.

I’m a fan of strength circuits as they pair 2-4 exercises together without rest.

This condenses an hour-long workout into a compact 30 minutes. Btw this is the main workout we use in our ​Lean Body 90 program​.

The focus is to cut the time that we spend in the gym while getting lean, building muscle & increasing strength.

When you do this workout you can cut your workout time in half and get in and out of gym in under 90 minutes a week.

This is what I'd consider to be the perfect workout​ for someone who's trying to make the most of their time in the gym on a busy schedule.

Step 4 - Get moving

You don’t need to do cardio to lose fat. All you need to do is get ​8-10k steps a day​ through a variety of methods.

I recommend to my clients to do a few things like walking meetings, lunch break walks and post-dinner walks.

If you ​sit for long periods​ and are willing to invest in yourself I would get a treadmill desk. This can turn a lot of the time you use at your desk into opportunities for walking.

Walking is highly underrated for fat loss because it’s low impact and can also help you speed recovery.

It also de-stresses your mind and body, which is a huge benefit to releasing the fat from your body.

Now, if you wanted to get some harder forms of cardio in I'd recommend ​things to raise your V02 max​ like zone 2 cardio or ​sprinting​. They're not necessary but they help.

Step 5 - Fix Your Sleeping Habits

Quality sleep helps you maintain energy and reduces appetite throughout the day.

It’s the most underrated piece to dropping body fat. Make sure you get the right amount for yourself by fixing your sleep habits.

Improving sleep is a vast topic but I got you.

I created an entire guide on my high performance sleep protocol that you can access at no cost at the link over here​.

Other Notes:

• I would eliminate all forms of snacking and drink water between meals instead. Snacking is usually due to boredom than it is about hunger.
• A great water system is to drink water upon waking, between meals, before meals, and after meals. This will keep you full and hydrated.
• I would aim to drink at least half my body weight in ounces to keep my body properly hydrated. I wouldn't drink it all at once but throughout the day (see above).
  
  

Nothing To It But To Do It

Getting in shape for the summer is a great motivator but fitness is a process, not an event.

As you lock down these 5 steps start identifying with the habits you’re creating so you can continue them on beyond the summer.

90 days of consistent effort is enough to help you get lean while making these habits a lifestyle that you can sustain.

Use the summertime motivation for what it is but remember that staying fit is about changing your identity.

Also, if you need help putting this together read PS. below.

As with all things, action is the most important.

Put this plan into action and I'll be seeing you at the beach this summer.

Onwards and upwards 🚀

- Dan

When you're ready, here are 3 ways I can help:

1. The Lean Body 90 System: When you’re ready to get in great shape, Lean Body 90 is the obvious choice. You can get in great shape and reach your fitness goals in just 90 minutes a week. Lose weight and build muscle even without hours in the gym or highly restrictive diets. Join 1000+ students here.

2. Are you an entrepreneur who wants to get lean, boost energy, and get in your best shape? Apply for private one-on-one coaching here.

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