Best Of Force Blog: The Skinny-Fat Solution by Anthony Mychal

It’s hard enough for regular guys to build muscle…but for us? For skinny-fat guys? It seems impossible with the typical advice.

That’s why I don’t follow typical advice. Instead, I use my own three step system. Wanna learn more?

Somewhere in Africa, a lion sits in the wild.

He wakes up to unknown food rations, weather patterns, and dangers. Yet he’s bold enough to handle his own life. His survival is his responsibility, and his responsibility alone.

Somewhere in a zoo, a lion sits in a cage.

He’s given food, shelter, and a safeguard from danger. He’s but a pawn, and not in charge of his own life.

Both of these creatures are lions; only one is king.

They have the same hardware — they’re made up of the same anatomical “stuff” — but the software makes all the difference.

Skinny-fat? You’re living in a unique cage.

Your software is broken. Your fat cells complicate things. Your body needs built back up in a specific way not only from a muscular proportion standpoint, but also from a overall body composition sequence standpoint.

I know these things because I was once in the skinny-fat cage.

I’ve come to be known as a skinny-fat guru of sorts, and I’m proud of that because I share your scars. Wider hips. Stretch marks on my lower back. Oh yes, the string bean arms, small wrists, lower chest fat, narrow shoulders, and the entire skinny-fat package was one there. But I’ve since learned how to live out there in the wild, and I’d like to help you do the same.

That’s why, when I had the chance to write for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s personal website, I wrote about skinny-fat syndrome. Now, I’ve been published a lot of places. But Arnold’s personal website? And skinny-fat as my topic of choice? That should tell you everything you need to know about me. (And maybe that Goku turning Super Saiyan changed my life. There was also this thing where a chick told me I had girl boobs in my skinny-fat heyday, but . . .)

It’s a complicated cage. It’s not one most people deal with, and here’s why this matters to you.

We typically learn from those that came before us and have done what we want to do. The problem with this for us? Most people that have done what we want to do didn’t start skinny-fat.

Why is it important? Because true-skinny guys don’t often have a flinch to fat.
True-skinny guys, when they start training, carve out one path to muscle. The flow follows that one path. That’s why they can chow down on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches all day and gain muscle without turning into lard. But if you’re skinny-fat?

You already have a path to body fat that’s paved and frequently travelled. The goal isn’t necessarily “fat loss” because that does nothing to fix what’s familiar. When you stop going fat loss berserk, you still have the paved path. And you’ll probably just get fat again. Now, fat loss is a part of the overall goal, but it isn’t the real goal. The real goal is to rewire the flinch.

Old school physical culturalists like Vince Gironda pioneered this idea with his relentless quest for an “X” shaped physique. This is important for you, too. It’s not always about “as much muscle as possible,” but rather about as much muscle possible in the right places. Physique is like a sculpture in that it’s an illusion. You can look a lot better with less clay if you know how to shape it right. But there’s a fine balance between getting overly detailed and prissy vs. knowing when to throw down hunks of clay in the right places vs. throwing down hunks of clay haphazardly. We need to be in the middle.

People are different. You are different. We can’t deny that some have better genetics for carrying and building muscle and being lean.

We don’t usually don’t fall in that bucket. Smaller and thinner bones make for smaller muscles generally. (I can wrap my fingers around my wrist and touch pinky to thumb.) The wunderkinds might have more muscle naturally or might build muscle with less effort or might build muscle using less effective exercises. Sadly, most people that “make it” don’t come from our background.

Our background, our “cage,” is a product of three things: nature (genetics), nurture (culture), and good old random chance.

It’s not that you can’t build muscle, it’s just that you can’t build muscle the same way the wunderkind does. Nurture is one third of the equation. You have control over this. Our body is aware of the world that it’s in, and so it “works” based upon this feedback. You created an environment in which your body said, “The best way for me to survive this is to be skinny-fat.” Sound depressing, right?

Because you have the power to change it. You are in control. You can step into the wild.

Without the wunderkind nature we have to create a wunderkind nurture.

And that’s the purpose of SOLDIER. (Sorry, no Mako involved. And if you know what I’m talking about we can be friends.) We live in an age of endless programs, and people running around like chickens without heads. SOLDIER is a three step system created with one single intention: you’re skinny-fat, you’re in that cage, here’s how you changed every possible aspect of nurture (training, nutrition, life) to break free. And I’m not talking about just seeing change, I’m talking about really adjusting things inside — rewiring the flinch.

This is where you learn the powerful barbell and bodyweight exercises that will best contribute to not only current “X” physique intentions, but also lead into exercises in the future. Some other work for fat loss is recommended, usually walking, sprinting, or rope jumping in a way that doesn’t interfere with the basic strength work.

Nutrition caters to muscle recovery but also promotes fat loss.

This is where you tell the body, “There is no option. The fat? It’s gotta’ go.” This is the stubborn fat phase, and is SOLDIER 2.0, which SOLDIER 3.0 laid a foundation for. We really jam home fat loss here, but only as much as necessary. We let 3.0 run its course because it’s best for muscle. When you go severe fat loss, muscle is usually on hold, so that’s why SOLDIER 2.0 is only a ten week thing for when it counts.

We ramp up fat loss specific work and make some changes to prevent the dreaded starvation mode and the body locking up its fat cells.

That’s why, after 2.0, I recommend making the muscles hyperactive while bringing nutrition to more of an autopilot feel. When you do this, you bring your body to a reset point where the muscles are hyperdemanding so any extra energy you happen to take in goes there and the fat cells get downplayed majorly. You aren’t actively seeking out muscle or eating for it, but that’s the point of the reset.

This puts you in the best spot moving forward.

And this brings us to The Skinny-Fat Solution.

The Skinny-Fat Solution is a comprehensive resource packed with PDF eBooks and other useful tools that, depending on your level of interest, take you through SOLDIER. As of now, there are three levels you can go with. I’ll run through all of them now, but you should also read about my “No Ass-to-risk Guarantee” that follows.

SOLDIER 3.0 X PHYSIQUE TRAINING PDF gives you the program and teaches you the philosophy behind muscle building, specifically in a way that’s going to cater to an “X” physique. It’s a barbell and bodyweight training program.

SOLDIER 3.0 NUTRITION PDF will have you looking at nutrients in a way a casual Google search could never teach you. It gives you the nutrition basics you need in order to make any meaningful body composition strides—how to eat for losing fat, yet also what to consider for muscle repair and growth.

SOLDIER 3.0 QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE PDF gives you the most important nuggets of information from the training, nutrition, and posture/movement guides in one handy dandy place.

SOLDIER 3.0 POSTURE & MOVEMENT PDF teaches you how move. Period. It dissects the fundamental human movements in the squat, press, pull, and hinge, and also guts the issue of posture (as it’s often a skinny-fat sore spot).

SOLDIER 3.0 EXERCISE BREAKDOWN PDFbreaks down each “main” lift within the program and gives suggestions for substitutions. It also gives links to YouTube videos for demonstrations and is chock full of pictures and diagnosing common problems.

(6) SOLDIER 3.0 KITCHEN AND LIFE VOODOO sets you straight. Let’s face it. This journey effects everyone around you. This document is the real gem, in my opinion. It gives you some recipes and kitchen tricks as well as some tips on how to integrate changes into your lifestyle. It’s the stuff no one talks about, yet everyone does behind the scenes. How do you deal with nutrition habits at work? How do you deal with changing your life without de-friending your friends? How do you cook food in a time efficient way? How do you *gasp* enjoy eating vegetables? What spices make food taste good? Why is cheese the greatest thing in the world? (OK, so I don’t exactly tackle that last issue, but I’ll admit to the premise of it.)

+ FREE UPDATES FOR LIFE AND EMAIL CONTACT. I keep in touch with all buyers via email, sending them product updates and anything that crosses my nose that may be useful. This is why people that buy are students more than anything else.

SOLDIER 1.0: THE HYPERMUSCLE QUEST PDF, which tells you what you need to know about your new body, specifically that it probably wants to get fat again. Your fat cells are like Gollum in that they want their prescciioussss energy back. Inside, it also outlines the high frequency training philosophy that I like to use in this phase, which is how to combine high frequency bodyweight training and barbell training in a way that best fits your situation. It also shows you how to go about dialing back your nutrition so you’re not fat loss loopy, but yet at the same time not going into bulk mode. The goal is to “normalize” your body so that it cares more about muscle than fat. Warning: a side effect of this is usually getting jacked; just thought I’d let you know. SOLDIER 1.0 also begins to talk about how to transform some of the staple exercises into more powerful “X” physique exercises.

GMB PERFECTING THE PULL-UP PDF, I’m just going to lay it out there: I treat the barbell deadlift and chin-up like gold. Because they are gold. And because gold is important, I called in my friends over at Gold Medal Bodies to give you some training tips for the pull-up. Ryan Hurst (former gymnast) gives you a progression and proper form to go from 0 to 1 pull-up, and then even some advanced training suggestions.

THE INTERNAL MONOLOGUE PDF, I took pictures throughout the first year of my transformation. This PDF is a ‘lil special egg in the lot in that I self coach myself along the way from where I sit now. For instance, a few months in I actually look fatter than in the beginning because of how my body was losing fat. Just little informative nuggets like this I thought would be valuable.

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My No Ass-to-Risk Guarantee is in place to prevent you from being misled or mistreated from online business malpractice. Your satisfaction is my guarantee. You may return this product if it doesn’t meet your expectations. Anytime. Anyplace. Even if my retailers refund period has expired (my retailer is ClickBank and they have a 60 day refund policy), I’ll handle it in house. Check out some testimonials, and then find out more about not risking your ass.

Your mind is swimming with ideas. It has to be. I know mine was.

There’s simply too much out there. P90X. Pilates. Bulking. Cutting. This method. That method. This gidget. That gadget. It’s overload. And sadly, most of it doesn’t work for us. I fell for the instant ab solutions when I was younger. (I even had one of those electrostimulation ab belts — one of my most embarrassing secrets.)

But I’ve done them all. I know your ultra low carb experiment zapped away your muscle. I know P90X didn’t put on the muscle you wanted it to and probably ruined your knees. I know your bulks left you with more fat than muscle. I know because I’ve been there. And I know what’s worked best for me and I can confidently say SOLDIER is that system.

Don’t make the same mistakes I made.

The question ISN’T if you have what it takes, it’s how much time you’re going to waste — how big of a hole you’re going to dig for yourself. It’s no coincidence that you’ve made it this far. You have what it takes. But the more important matter at hand: not getting lost in the thicket so that you can start making progress now. Every day of moving in the opposite direction carries potential irreversible damage.

If this means as much to you as it did to me, you can’t waste any second of your time — or dollar from your wallet — on something that sends you backwards in progress. That’s my back. Those are stretch marks. There. Forever. I could have prevented them by taking action quicker.

So you have a choice: You can stay in your cage. Or you can become king.

Here are some people that chose the latter. Will you be next?

Every document within the Skinny-Fat Solution are PDF files that are compatible with ADOBE and other like PDF readers. They come in a .zip file, which most operating systems can inherently unzip. There are no physical products shipped. And breathe easy. You are protected from internet scum.

My No Ass-to-Risk Guarantee is in place to prevent you from being misled or mistreated from online business malpractice.

First, your satisfaction is my guarantee. You may return this product if it doesn’t meet your expectations. Anytime. Anyplace. Even if my retailers refund period has expired (my retailer is ClickBank and they have a 60 day refund policy), I’ll handle it in house. Check out some testimonials, and then find out more about not risking your ass.

Anthony Mychal is one of the few people whose advice I trust implicitly, and it wouldn’t be hyperbolic to say his teaching has changed my life.

As a former skinny-fat (physically, at least!) looking to add muscle after reaching my solid base, his articles, and the TSFS / Chaos Bulk resources in particular, address my situation perfectly. He doesn’t just prescribe boilerplate sets of lifts, but also tackles the nutrition; lifestyle; and, importantly, the psychological baggage that comes with this body type.

I was lucky enough to jump on the Skinny-Fat Solution charter group membership, and being part of the Skinny Fat Solution coaching group has allowed me a privileged position where Anthony is on hand to offer advice and answer students’ specific questions and concerns. He is always exceptionally supportive, celebrating our achievements with us, without being afraid to dish out a bit of “tough love” where necessary (something I’ve benefited from on more than one occasion!).

In short, I am proud to call him my mentor, and hope to be able to do so for many years to come.

The “before” pictures here were taken before I found Anthony. I was able to lose some fat with “traditional” bodybuilding methods — frequent meals, no alcohol, etc. But I spent years bulking and cutting, only to get no where. It was SO frustrating.

Enter Anthony and his abundance of Skinny-Fat information, and I was able to stay stay pretty lean, gain strength, and gain muscle. I FINALLY feel like I’m making real progress, and Anthony has BY FAR been the biggest positive influence in that regard.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention one more BIG thing. I was one of the biggest offenders of program hopping. There are soooo many resources out there, that are so different, and claim to be the best. I think I tried everything under the sun!
Once I adopted Anthony’s policy to stick to a program, practice the Great Eight, and gauge my progress…things started to click!

I used to be your classic skinny-fat ectomorph. My body composition was born from too many video games and too little physical activity—a lifestyle that also caused debilitating back pain for me as a teenager. I was called names. Teased. I wasn’t comfortable in my own skin. I didn’t enjoy the way I looked.

At the end of 2008, I started exercising regularly. Training was usually three days per week with an hour of aerobic work thrown in. This exercise alone (without dietary considerations) helped with both weight loss and my back pain. But like most people, I fell into the trap of “bulking.” I got thicker, but my muscles didn’t exactly come along for the ride. Bulking didn’t go as planned.

In 2011, I fully bought into what Anthony preached, which turned out being a great decision because it worked. I started looking lean and athletic. My body felt better day by day and I lost 15kg in a relatively short time period. Every exercise I did improved. My pull-ups (that Anthony puts such high praise on) went from 3-4 reps per set to 11 reps per set.

All in all, Anthony’s perspective, and Anthony’s website helped me create not only a better body, but also a better life. I look and feel better than I ever have before.

It’s only a small exaggeration to say that Anthony saved my life because I really didn’t have much of one before. My entire life revolved around training. Working out was negatively impacting my life as it had put a strain on my finances (food, memberships, supplements etc.), my relationships with friends and family (go grab a pint? no way!), and my career because all my time and mental focus was being spent on this obsession.

But even with all of that sacrifice, I made very little noticeable gains. Everyone else worked out moderately, never followed any specific diet, and yet they were all in way better shape than me. I tried all of their routines but they didn’t work. I did every fad diet and internet program which just entered me into a cycle of constant failure and frustration. When I began working with personal trainers they attributed my lack of progress to not dieting strictly enough, not enough supplements, or that I was wasn’t pushing myself, or trying hard enough. Wrong.

I found that a problem with a lot of trainers is that many of them have been in shape their whole lives, and believe that those who are out of shape are lazy and make poor diet choices. If you have found your way here, chances are that this does not describe you. Most trainers don’t believe in body types, have no clue about frustration, failure, and the emotional weight of being embarrassed about your body.

What makes Anthony different from all the other trainers out there is that he can empathize with the skinny-fat ectomorph because he has walked in our shoes. He recognizes our struggle and truly understands what we are trying to achieve. His guidance has been both motivational and inspirational to me. The main thing that I think gives him an edge over everyone else is experience. He has been working with his own stubborn body his whole life. Not only has he figured it out for himself but he has helped many others in the same situation. This makes the likelihood of his methods working for you much greater as a good chunk of the guess work has been done. He acknowledges that we must train differently than the average person, and has solutions for our bodies’ stubborn nature.

I’ve learned about the mental aspect of training, which is often forgotten, and it has been beneficial not only to my training but in other areas of my life too. Our bodies react to stress, both physical and mental, in a different manor than the rest of the world. I still train hard and consistently but I never exceed what my body or my mind can take.

My results are that I am the best physical shape that I have ever been in. I have the lowest body fat percentage ever, greatest definition, increased flexibility, and increased aerobic endurance. I look great, feel great, and am comfortable with my shirt off. I train in a way that has become my lifestyle which means that it’s all uphill from here. I’ve finally found a method of training that is giving me real and noticeable results. I got my life back and I got the confidence that I always wanted.

Years ago, when I started training, everything I did was more or less the exact opposite of what Anthony teaches. In the few years I had been training I only made small gains relative to how much effort, time and energy I was pumping into my workouts! Before long my skinny fat body was only ever so slightly more muscular and a hell of a lot fatter. This drove me to quit working out and just giving up.

I was out of the gym for close on 4 years and had become very overweight, very weak and very very unhappy. I decided enough was enough. Doing some research lead me to a number of websites, Anthony’s being one of them. I instantly enjoyed reading his articles and the theory made sense to me. Before too long I was pumped to get started again.

I implemented his eating style, his diet tips and his training protocols. Now, a year later, I’m down 65 lbs, about 3 times stronger then when I started, and much much happier. Anthony’s help and teachings are a huge part of what got me to where I am now, and his helpful nature was very greatly appreciated.

Anthony is one of the nicest people I have ever had the pleasure to talk with. He is a seriously knowledgeable man in this field and is more then happy to share it with everyone. Even if you have a specific question and email him looking for help, he will reply. This is something that is very rare in this industry, even for “Personal” trainers that you meet in person.

I owe so much to what he has thought me, its changed my life forever. I have no doubt that he can do the same for you.

I’m not sure whether I’ll be able to fully change my body composition the way I want. But one thing I know for sure – following Anthony’s advice has changed my life! It’s much simpler, healthier and relaxed, at least in terms of training and nutrition.

I used to change workout programs and nutrition strategy every 2-3 months. I was spending hundreds of hours studying all that was available about how to lose fat and gain muscles. I always hoped that next program would be the one. It all just made me hopeless.

Anthony is not a businessmen. He’s not like most of other experts who have done big internet business in fitness. I don’t have anything against it. But this guy really wants to help people, without having any kind of financial benefit for sharing his knowledge, wisdom and advice.

As former skinny-fat ectomorph there is no better person to teach by his own experience. Besides he knows a lot about the athleticism in general. Also, very important, he is gifted to transfer his knowledge in so simple and practical way that anyone can understand and immediately apply.

Finally, I know exactly what I do and why I do that particular exercise, why I do that many sets and reps, why I eat what I eat and when I eat… It’s that simple! I just regret there was no “Anthony” some 15 years ago.

I am excited to tell you since discovering Anthony Mychal I have found the required faith that I can reach my goals. Seeing the proof with Anthony’s transformation I now know that I too can build a more muscular body. I have been primarily on the skinny side of Skinny Fat for all my life. I am now following Anthony’s recommendations found on his blog, The Skinny Fat Solution and Chaos Bulk programs. Today I am making gains not seen after over a dozen years of lifting weights. Even after religiously following another popular skinny guy 5 x 5 program for a frustrating few years. I have learned that pull-up are vital and I need to do bicep curls in order to reach my goals. I highly endorse Anthony’s recommendations and his products.

Ant’s approach to strength, conditioning and nutrition is unique in that he has taken the logic and common sense of some of the best in the game and applied his own experiences and knowledge to create systems and ideas tailored towards those of us from a genetically disadvantaged background. On a personal level, Ant’s writing and guidance has finally got my training and nutrition moving forward after years of spinning my wheels. I look better than ever before, and although I have a long way to go to reach my physique and strength goals, I know that Ant’s guidance will help get me there. His ideas just make a lot of sense, and he presents them in such a way so as to make the seemingly complex easy to understand. He is also conscientious; on many occasions I have pestered him with mundane, interesting or challenging questions, and I have always received a reply. His products deliver great value for money, and if you have a question, he will answer it. What more could you want?!

I had two big problems with my body. First, I didn’t like it. Second, I had lower back pain. Sitting in a chair all day really takes it’s toll. I thought I was helpless.

Then I found Anthony’s blog, and read The Skinny Fat Solution.
Everything that Anthony teaches with The Skinny-Fat Solution helped me so much, the exercises, the nutrition guide, and even down to the way of life that he proposes.

Now I’m not only free from back pain, but I’m also happier with my body. It’s a journey and I’m just starting, but I can already tell that it will be a sweet ride. I’m stronger than I’ve ever been, and I only look forward to the future. There are a lot of fitness guys who teach how to train. Only a few teach how to train in a healthy manner. And not many have the empathy of Anthony.

No-Ass-to-Risk Guarantee Continued

Let’s start back from the top: My No Ass-to-Risk Guarantee is in place to prevent you from being misled or mistreated from online business malpractice.

Second, the training program makes use of barbell training. There is no alternative program, because I don’t compromise my stones (what I feel works best) to appease others. In order to introduce those unfamiliar, I created the “Dissecting the Great Eight,” “Perfecting the Pull-up,” and “Leveling Up the Upper Chest” guides to truly turn over everything I program. It’s fully comprehensive.

The nutrition protocol makes use of intermittent fasting, which is going for prolonged times without food. The best way to think of intermittent fasting: it’s a nutrition strategy that has you skip breakfast and eat lighter through out the day.

In regard to typical results, I always give the same disclaimer with any digital product: One of two things will happen when you buy my products. Either A: You might buy it and never use it. You might even return it because you’re too lazy to use it, read it, or value what’s inside. Or B: you’ll get it, follow through with the plan, learn something new about yourself, and see the resultant knowledge shine through with improvements in your body or life. Things with the body take hard work. If you’re willing to chip in your share you won’t be disappointed.

If you want to purchase any of these guides alone, or if you have any questions…

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Email me. I’m a human, so I understand if you have any questions. And yes, I’ll personally respond.

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