Big Mistakes Little Guys Make

For most men, it’s the promise of bigger muscles.

That, and maybe, girls.

That’s why they hit the gym.  That’s why they frequent the all-you-can-eat buffets.  That’s why they chug down chalky protein powders.  And that’s why they subscribe to those goofy bodybuilding magazines.

All that time.  All that energy.  All that sacrifice.  All that effort.  And, still, for most scrawny guys, they start scrawny.  And they stay scrawny.

Muscle Building Frustration

Trust me, I know all about this.

For a few years, I was one of those skinny guys.  I hit the gym, I used my whey protein, I ate as much as I could, and still nothing.

Well, that’s not true.  In my first year of lifting weights, I gained a measly 6 lbs.  Sure, that’s not bad for a seasoned veteran.  But, for a 5 foot 8inch, 130lb, 17-year-old who just started lifting weights, that was pretty sad.  And I almost threw in the towel.

Guess what?  I’m not alone.

I remember a chat I once had with former pro bodybuilder Milos Sarcev.  He told me a similar story.  When he was 17 through 19 years of age, his gym efforts not only weren’t that effective.  They actually yielded negative results.  That’s right, during these two years, he lost body weight and muscle mass.

How frustrating would that be?

One of my good friends, Paul Valiulis, provides yet another example of what can happen.  Instead of losing weight, or making minimal gains, Paul’s initial efforts turned him from stick figure to that Fat Bastard guy from the Austin Powers’ movies.

At 6foot 2inches, he started out by tipping the scales at an emaciated 130lbs.  Then, after a year of trying to get bigger, we weighed in at a whopping 200lbs.  However, almost all of the 70lbs he gained were fat pounds.  He ended up with over 25% body fat.

Muscle Building Success Stories

So, why am I telling you all this?

Well, not to frustrate the hell outta you.  Rather, because there’s definitely a silver lining around this cloudy forecast.

Indeed, once I figured out the right way to eat, the right way to train, and the right way to supplement, I went on to transform my scrawny body from 5’8″, 130lbs to 5’8″ 220lbs, winning the NABBA Jr Mr USA bodybuilding championships along the way.

Dr Berardi at the Mr Jr USA Contest

Heck, I remember when I started, I couldn’t even bench press the bar with 10lbs on each side.  And, two years later, I was bench pressing the bar plus 4 of those 45lb plates on each side.  A happy ending indeed.

How about that Milos guy? The one with the negative progress after two years?  Well, he ended up becoming an international champion pro bodybuilder with a host of professional titles on his mantle.

Milos Finally Figured It Out Too

And what about Paul, the Fat Bastard clone?  Well, Paul, ended up re-starting from scratch.  He followed the Scrawny to Brawny program to the letter, lost all his body fat, and rebuilt his body into a ripped muscle-machine.  His transformation eventually took him from 6’2″, 130lbs to 6’2″, 210lbs, where he sits today.

Paul Valiuls After Gaining 70lbs of Lean Mass

10 Skinny Guy Mistakes

I love sharing these stories because they demonstrate that even the most unimpressive beginnings can lead to exceptional outcomes.  The key, however, is to avoid making the big mistakes that little guys make.  Or, even if you do make the mistakes, to learn from them.

So, with that in mind, I got together with Scrawny to Brawny poster-boy, Paul V.  And we came up with a list of the top 10 mistakes skinny guys make when trying to build muscle.

Mistake #1 – Choosing The Wrong Parents

Let’s face it, skinny guys usually start out skinny because of the genes their parents handed down.  But it’s not just their genes.  It’s their genes, coupled with the typical North American way of exercising and eating.

You see, skinny genes typically lead to less effective anabolic hormones.  And they also lead to overzealous catabolic and thyroid hormones.  So, when a guy with skinny genes eats the typical 3 squares a day and does the same lame workouts seen in most fitness centers, packing on muscle is virtually hopeless.  Their metabolism is just too fast.  And their workouts, just not strong enough.

However, there is a hopeful message.   Even if you chose the wrong parents, by eating and training the right way for your body, you can overcome the genetics part.  Truly, many guys have before you.  And many will after you.

Whether you make the transformation or not, that’s up to whether or not you make the next mistake…

Mistake #2 – Thinking Your Problem Is Out Of Your Control

As discussed above, just because you’ve got skinny genes doesn’t mean things are out of your control.  Sure, it’s a convenient excuse for guys not interested in working hard enough.  But their problem isn’t a scrawny body, it’s a scrawny mind.  And I’m assuming you’re not one of them.

So, step one is to realize that you have control.  There’s always a way to pack on muscle.  So you can’t to blame your genes, your momma’s cooking, your non-supportive friends, or your crappy barbell set.

Once you know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you’re the boss, that you’re in the driver’s seat, that’s when you’ll be ready to leave the land of scrawny behind for good.

And the next step involves avoiding the next mistake…

Mistake #3 – Not Eating Enough

For most guys, this is, far and away, the biggest problem.  Now I know, you’re different.  You eat A TON.  And you still can’t gain any weight.  Well, here’s the thing.  If you’re not gaining weight, no matter how much you’re now eating, it’s not enough.  And you have to start eating more.

Seriously, if you’re feeling inclined to argue with me, here’s what to do.  Log into the free diet and weight loss journal – Fit Day.  (If you have to, create a free account).  While you’re there, analyze one day’s worth of your meals.  Really, do it.  It’ll only take 20 minutes.

Fit Day will tell you exactly how many calories you’re eating.  And if you’re not eating at least your body weight (in pounds) multiplied by 20, you’re not eating even close to enough.  But remember, if you’re already eating that much, what’s the next step?  When in doubt, eat more!

How are you gonna do that? Well, you’re gonna have to leave behind the next mistake…

Mistake #4 – Having Outdated Food Ideas

Do you believe that it’s inhumane to eat more than 2-3 meals per day?  Do you think that breakfast is optional?  Do  you think that workout drinks are only for serious athletes?  Do you think that eating too much protein will ruin your kidneys?  If so, you’ve got some outdated food ideas, my friend.

To start with, three meals a day will never work for you.  You need 6 meals a day. Also, breakfast is no longer optional.  You need a “muscle breakfast” and it needs to be your biggest meal of the day.  In addition, workout drinks aren’t just for the big guys or the sport athletes.  They’re for you.  And you might even need multiple drinks each day.  As far as the protein/kidney thing, well, if you’re a healthy guy, your kidneys are in no danger.  So you’re gonna need a lot of protein.

Truly, to enter the land of brawny, you need to get rid of the crappy food ideas that most other people carry around in their heads.  Those ideas are either flat-out wrong.  Or they simply don’t apply to someone like you.  So, starting today, let’s start eating the right way for muscle building.

Because you’re gonna need all those extra calories to avoid the next mistake…

Mistake #5 – Not Logging Your Training

Another mistake most guys make – whether scrawny or not – is this one.  Now, the training journal isn’t the be-all-and-end all of muscle building.  Lots of big guys don’t keep a written journal.  However, when you see a big guy without a journal, assume they’re keeping a journal in their head.

You see, when you journal your workouts, you’re forced to get organized.  A journal means you have a program, so you’re not haphazardly making it up as you go along.  Also, a journal means you’re looking back at previous workouts, so you can use workout progressions to force your body to get better.

Now, the idea of workout progression is challenging for some guys.  But it’s really simple.  All it means is that during every successive week, you’re making it harder on your muscles that the previous week.  This could mean doing more sets, it could mean doing more reps, it could mean lifting more weight.  In some cases, it could mean all three.  Just remember, each week has to be harder.

And, speaking of each week, when it comes to training, it’s important to avoid the next mistake…

Mistake #6 – Thinking Muscles Happen Overnight

Over 80,000 reps, done over 10,000 sets, performed over 520 workouts, done over the course of 2  years.  That’s what it took for me transform my body from 135lbs to 205lbs.  Sure, in retrospect, 2 years didn’t seem all that long.  However, during my transformation process, it felt like forever.

Think about it, in 2 years there are 104 weeks.  So, although I gained about 70lbs of mostly lean body weight during that time, it really averages out to just about 0.7lbs per week.  Guys, that feels slow.  Like no major change is ever gonna happen.  But, just like with banking, small, consistent deposits collected over long periods of time can lead to a big bank account.

Of course, the key word there is consistent.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.  Consistency, not novelty, is the secret to uncommon results.  If you can figure out how to train and eat right for your body, and you practice doing those two things every day for 720 days straight, you too will go from Scrawny to Brawny.  I promise it.

However, staying that consistent means getting your head right and avoiding the next mistake…

Mistake #7 – Listening to Negative People

There’s a strange irony in the world today.  Most of society tells us that we can be whatever we want if we just work hard enough.  Then, the minute you start working hard for something, people start telling you that you can’t do stuff.  Well, I say, screw those people.

I can’t tell you how many negative people I encountered during my muscle-building journey.  Probably hundreds.  They said I didn’t have what it takes.  That I’d never build a great body.  That I was too skinny, too weak, and so on.  Even well-meaning family members pointed to my dad and said that he tried to build muscle when he was young too.  And he failed.  So maybe I should just give up the dream and accept who I was.

Man, if I bailed every time someone told me that “I couldn’t,” I can’t imagine where I’d be today.  I’m just glad that I learned early on that when someone tells me that “I can’t”, the right response is to prove them wrong.

But, I learned that when I avoided the next mistake…

Mistake #8 – Not Having A Mentor

When I was training to build muscle, I was more or less scuffling along until I met a national level bodybuilder named Craig.  Seeing how much effort I was putting in – and how little progress I was making – he pulled me aside and invited me to train with him.

Over the next two years, Craig taught me exactly how to train, exactly how to eat, and most of all, how to prepare myself mentally for all the obstacles that would inevitably come my way.  And, within about a year and a half, I was on-stage, winning the Mr. Jr. USA competition.

Craig showed me “the way,” much faster than I would have ever learned it on my own – if I would have ever learned on my own at all.  Truly, I attribute much of my success to having some coaching and mentorship at the most critical times.

And, during the other times, a lot of my success came by avoiding the next mistake…

Mistake #9 – Not Being Surrounded By Muscle

I’ll admit it, I often make fun of the muscle magazines.  At times, the advice can be so generic.  And, if you’re around for long enough, the advice starts to seem so recycled and cliche.  However, muscle magazines probably did play an important role in my development when I was younger.

Oddly enough, it probably didn’t have anything to do with the articles.  It was the pictures.  It was regularly seeing photos of muscular dudes who started out just like me and, through the right programs, ended up looking like super-heroes.

To this end, I definitely think there’s value in surrounding yourself with muscle.  It could be magazine images.  Or, better yet, it could be real-life men who’ve built large amounts of muscle and can show you exactly how to do what they did.  Either way, it’s important to look at muscle daily.  To envision what you’d like to become.  To remember that other guys have done what you’re trying to do.

Of course, to do this, you also need to avoid this final mistake…

Mistake #10 – Working Out At A Wussy Gym

Wussy gyms either don’t provide the right equipment to do all the important muscle-building exercises.  Or they actively discourage you from doing them.  Plus, wussy gyms are conspicuously devoid of muscular dudes.  And these are the very guys you need to be around for motivation and mentorship.

Truly, if you want to build serious muscle, you need to place yourself in an environment where serious muscle thrives, not where it’s weeded out.  So, whatever you do, avoid these types of gyms when looking for a membership.  And, if you’re stuck in a membership, sell it to someone else so you can go join a good muscle-friendly gym.

I can’t emphasize enough how important environment and social support will play in your muscle-building journey.  So, if you look around your gym and see nothing but people who are small and weak, what more can you expect from yourself?

Ok, there you have it.  Our top 10 skinny-guy mistakes.  If you’re looking to build muscle and struggling along the way, make sure you ruthlessly eliminate all 10 of them.  Because doing so will likely mean the difference between sporting a super-hero physique or staying exactly like you are now.

Want Help?

If you’re a skinny guy, are making some of these mistakes, and need some help, here’s the good news.

Starting June 1st, Coach Paul and I are going to take a small group of guys through a complete 6-month body transformation — training, nutrition, supplementation, recovery . . . everything.  We’re calling it the Scrawny to Brawny Coaching Program, and we’ll have plenty more to say about the program in the coming weeks.

What do we know about going from Scrawny to Brawny?  Well, we both did it.  Each of us gained around 70lbs of lean muscle in 2 years on the program.  And we’ve made it our mission to teach you how you can do the same.

The problem is that we can only take on so many people in a given program, otherwise it becomes unmanageable. So we’re going to cap this first group at 200 guys.

Given that last time we mentioned doing this, we had over 20,000 guys express interest, the problem is going to be how to decide who gets in. My answer is always to reward the most eager, the most motivated, because in my experience they make the best clients.

So here’s how it’s going to work:

If you’re interested in being a part of this first S2B coaching group, click this link to join the pre-sale list.  If you do so, within the next few days I’ll send you more info on the program itself, and I’ll also give you a chance to register for one of the spots 24 hours before the general public.

I hope to see you in the program!