Self-Selecting

What does it really take to succeed in IFBB Bikini bodybuilding, build bigger glutes, and compete at the Olympia level? In this episode, I'm joined by IFBB Bikini Pro and Fit Body Fusion coach Jordan Brannon to discuss the evolution of Bikini bodybuilding, her competitive career, and the training decisions behind her physique development. We explore how genetics and biomechanics influence glute gr...

If you've ever stepped on the scale, noticed sudden weight gain, and wondered whether you're bloated, retaining water, or gaining fat, this episode is for you. In this episode, I'm breaking down 7 signs it's water weight and 4 signs it may be body fat. I'll explain how sodium, poor sleep, intense workouts, stress, and increased carbs can cause weight fluctuations—and why a sudd...

Want to grow bigger glutes but aren't sure which exercises actually deliver results? In this video, I'm breaking down my favorite glute-building exercises, the techniques I use, and the training mistakes that could be holding back your glute growth. I'm walking you through B-stance Romanian deadlifts (RDLs), barbell RDLs, Bulgarian split squats, walking lunges, front squats, and Smith...

Are you constantly trying to lose more body fat but still aren't getting closer to your dream physique? What if the answer isn't losing another five pounds, but building more muscle instead? In this episode, I share a real client coaching case study that reveals how easily we can misjudge body fat, muscle mass, and physique goals. Using progress photos from my own bodybuilding career, I break down...

Are you stuck at the same weight despite being in a calorie deficit? Or are you training hard, eating more, and still struggling to build muscle? In this episode, I break down why your body probably isn't stubborn—and what might actually be preventing you from seeing progress. I walk through how I troubleshoot fat loss plateaus with my coaching clients, why calorie tracking and dietary adheren...

How quickly should you be losing fat or gaining weight when your goal is to build muscle? In this episode, I break down how I determine realistic rates of weight loss and muscle gain for my coaching clients, including how to set calorie deficits and surpluses that support progress without sacrificing muscle or accumulating unnecessary body fat. I explain why I typically start with a 500-calorie de...

What does it actually take to build an Olympia-level bikini physique naturally? In this episode, I'm joined by natural IFBB Bikini Pro and Olympia competitor Meg D’Ginto to discuss her bodybuilding journey, how she's built muscle without performance-enhancing drugs, and what it takes to remain competitive as bikini bodybuilding standards continue to evolve. We cover natural versus enhanced...

What’s the difference between being disciplined with your diet and becoming overly restrictive? In this episode, I break down the difference between being strict versus restrictive with fat loss, nutrition, and training. Being strict can mean having structure, boundaries, and clear goals while still being able to adapt when life doesn’t go according to plan. Restriction often comes from fear, guil...

Is your dream physique actually attainable—and are you willing to do what it takes to achieve and maintain it? In this episode, I break down the framework I use to determine whether a fat loss or muscle-building goal is realistic. I explain why you need to look honestly at the gap between your current physique and your goal, how social media can distort what you think is achievable, and why you ca...

When should you modify your workout—and when should you stop overthinking it and just follow the program? In this episode, I break down my framework for making smart training modifications without sacrificing muscle growth. I explain how I decide whether a workout needs to change based on recovery, stress, sleep, menstrual cycle symptoms, stability, warm-up performance, equipment availability, and...

If you’re tracking your calories, following your diet, and still not losing weight, there may be something in your food tracking that you’re unintentionally missing. In this episode, I walk through my 7-point fat loss checklist for figuring out why the scale isn’t moving even when you think you’re 100% adherent. I cover untracked calories, weighing foods raw versus cooked, batch cooking, inaccurat...

If you feel like you’re always dieting but never quite lean enough, it may be time to ask why you’re so afraid to stop. In this episode, I break down nine reasons people get stuck in permanent dieting and struggle to transition out of a calorie deficit. I cover constantly moving the goalpost on fat loss, believing getting leaner will finally make you happy, fearing weight and body fat gain, and st...

How much do genetics actually matter for building muscle, losing fat, and creating an impressive physique? In this episode, I break down why I think genetic potential is only one piece of the equation. I cover the factors you can’t control—like skeletal structure and muscle insertions—but also the behaviors, environment, motivation, training quality, nutrition, recovery, and ability to learn that...

Building muscle isn’t just about eating more and training harder—the off-season can be one of the most challenging parts of changing your physique. In this episode, I break down 10 ways to prevent off-season burnout, including managing body image and scale weight, maintaining nutrition adherence, tracking progress, training intentionally, and setting realistic expectations for muscle growth. I als...

If your training isn’t driving muscle growth, adding PEDs isn’t going to fix the underlying problem. In this video, I break down what I actually mean when I say your training needs to be “dialed in” for muscle growth. I cover training stability, proximity to failure, exercise selection, exercise order, training splits, volume, warm-ups, and filming your lifts for feedback—and why each can become a...

I’m back with another rapid-fire Q&A—60 questions covering bodybuilding, PEDs, glute growth, contest prep, fat loss, training, hormones, and more. In this episode, I answer your questions on anti-estrogens during contest prep, increasing estrogen levels, GH vs. IGF-1, carb cycling, PEDs I wouldn’t use again, and whether stacking Anavar and Primo actually makes sense. I also talk about viriliza...

If you’re a woman using anabolic steroids or other androgenic PEDs, there are certain signs of virilization I don’t want you to ignore. In this video, I break down seven warning signs I would pay attention to when using compounds like TRT, Anavar, Primo, SARMs, or other PEDs that can produce androgenic effects. I cover changes in vocal pitch, persistent throat changes, clitoral enlargement and sen...

Why do some people actually start looking and feeling worse the longer they diet? In this episode, I break down seven signs that your fat loss phase may be creating more dietary fatigue than your body can effectively manage. I cover declining training performance, rising stress and cortisol, muscle loss from an overly aggressive calorie deficit, poor sleep, extreme hunger-management “hacks,” diges...

If you hate your meal plan, forcing yourself to eat the same boring foods every day probably isn't going to make you more consistent. In this episode, I break down practical food swaps and meal prep ideas I use with clients to make a fat loss or muscle-building diet more enjoyable without completely rebuilding the plan. I cover overlooked protein sources, alternatives to rice and potatoes, ways to...

Fat loss is straightforward—but the way we approach it can make it unnecessarily difficult. In this episode, I break down seven fat loss principles I consistently see determine whether someone makes progress or stays stuck. I cover why honest adherence matters more than optimization, how inaccurate food tracking can erase a calorie deficit, why you should stop changing a system that's already...

Social events, birthdays, holidays, and meals out don't have to completely derail your fat loss phase. In this episode, I walk through a real example of how I helped a client navigate two untracked restaurant meals and birthday cake in the same day while still keeping her fat loss goals in mind. Instead of trying to perfectly track every calorie—or writing the entire day off as a cheat day—I s...

What are bikini competitors actually using—and what are the risks that often get left out of the conversation? In this episode, I break down 10 categories of performance-enhancing drugs commonly seen in bikini bodybuilding, including anabolic androgenic steroids, GLP-1s, growth agonists, beta agonists, thyroid hormone, TRT, SERMs, SARMs, diuretics, and hormone replacement therapy. Rather than pres...

In this episode, I sit down with Amanda Sangiacomo to unpack some of the biggest myths and misleading claims circulating in women’s fitness. We talk about whether Pilates can actually narrow your rib cage or “lengthen” muscles, why women fear getting bulky, what body recomposition really requires, and why body scans don’t always tell the full story. We also get into viral claims around “cortisol f...

Want bigger, rounder delts without accidentally overdeveloping your traps, arms, or back? In this episode, I break down how I would structure an upper-body training program specifically for shoulder growth. I explain why defining the exact physique you want comes first, how I measure delt progress, and why your bone structure and body-fat distribution influence how much shoulder development you ac...

Struggling to eat enough calories during a muscle-building phase without feeling uncomfortably full? In this episode, I share 17 high-calorie, lower-volume foods I use for myself and clients when food intake gets high. From dates, honey, kefir, and higher-fat dairy to seeds, dark chocolate, anchovies, and plantains, I break down practical ways to increase calories while still prioritizing whole fo...