Q: I’m thinking about trying the intermittent-fasting that Steve used to get more muscular and ripped [Super-Size Crash Course e-book, Chapter 8]? I’m extremely curious about the whole idea of eating less and producing more testosterone. I need something to get the ripping start, and it obviously burns fat quickly. I’m just so paranoid about losing muscle. I thought I would try it once a week, and if it works well, increase to two nonconsecutive days a week as Steve did. Any insights on muscle loss during IF?
All of us bodybuilders are paranoid about losing even an ounce of muscle, so we hear you. But you won’t lose muscle—you should gain more…
That’s because fasting as outlined in SSCC—two nonconsecutive days a week with a small protein-charge breakfast and then a protein-charged dinner 12 hours later—increases testosterone and you burn more fat… Yes, that means you can eat less and have more testosterone as a result.
Here’s what respected bodybuilding researcher Jerry Brainum said about fasting recently:
One fasting study measured urea nitrogen, which reflects a breakdown of muscle in the body. The study found it was not increased after 36 hours of fasting, but did increase at the 60-hour mark.
Another study of ADF fasting found that alternating between 20 hours of fasting and 28 hours of feeding did not alter whole-body protein metabolism in healthy men.
Again, the body doesn’t begin to catabolize muscle protein until after 3 days of sustained fasting. The energy derived during the first two days of fasting comes from stored glycogen reserves and fat breakdown.
There you have it. Twelve hours of fasting on two nonconsecutive days a week will not have you burning muscle—just the opposite as your body fat decreases and your testosterone and growth hormone increase. [Webber, J., et al. (1994). Br J Nutr.]
It worked for Steve…
Notice how Steve went from stringy to fuller as well as more cut after only five weeks? Use IF to rip up your physique with lowered body fat and more testosterone.
Super-Size Crash Course: For more in intermittent fasting as well as mass workouts featuring Power POF, 4X, Downward-Progression 4X and TORQ (tension-overload repetition quantity), get The Super-Size Crash Course.
Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
—Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson
www.X-Rep.com