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I’m starting this log about one year after the end of my marriage, with the divorce and related court matters still ongoing. I won’t go into the legal details, but the stress of the past few years has affected nearly every part of my life, including my training, recovery and physique.
The first photo is me around three years ago. I was still in the relationship and training five days a week, but looking back, I wasn’t as locked in as I thought. Maybe the long-term relationship had already been affecting my mindset. Whatever the reason, I’ve now set myself the goal of becoming better than I was in my mid-20s.
The second photo is from near the end of the relationship. By that stage, the accumulated stress was obvious, both physically and mentally. My training had lost direction, my habits had slipped and I no longer felt like myself. My body looked and felt withered. In the middle of the breakup, I also suffered a torn pec. It’s crazy what prolonged stress and poor recovery can do to the body.
The final photo is where I am now. I’ve rebuilt a reasonable foundation and am currently using TRT, a GLP-1 and a GH-related peptide. I want to be transparent about that rather than present this as a natural transformation.
I’m now training less: four days a week with fewer working sets. I’m leaving my ego out of the gym and focusing on execution rather than simply moving the most weight possible. Training has become almost like a form of meditation. I’m present, controlled and focused on feeling the target muscle working.
Recovery has also become a priority. I’m currently aiming for a minimum of 6.5 hours of sleep and working toward improving that further. Previously, I spent years surviving on four-and-a-half to five hours, thinking I was hardcore for sleeping less while pushing almost every set in the gym to failure. Looking back, I wasn’t hardcore. I was just making it harder for my body to recover and progress.
The goal from here isn’t a reckless bulk or a short-lived transformation. I want to push forward slowly, using conservative and considered doses, regularly monitoring my health markers and remaining relatively lean throughout the process.
This log will cover the entire rebuild: training, nutrition, recovery, health, habits and mindset. I turn 37 this month, and I don’t want to keep repeating the same patterns or waste more years waiting for the perfect time.
New habits. New mindset. A better standard.
The aim is simple: build the strongest, healthiest and most complete version of myself that I realistically can before 40, then keep building from there.
This is day one of BuiltB4Forty.
The first photo is me around three years ago. I was still in the relationship and training five days a week, but looking back, I wasn’t as locked in as I thought. Maybe the long-term relationship had already been affecting my mindset. Whatever the reason, I’ve now set myself the goal of becoming better than I was in my mid-20s.
The second photo is from near the end of the relationship. By that stage, the accumulated stress was obvious, both physically and mentally. My training had lost direction, my habits had slipped and I no longer felt like myself. My body looked and felt withered. In the middle of the breakup, I also suffered a torn pec. It’s crazy what prolonged stress and poor recovery can do to the body.
The final photo is where I am now. I’ve rebuilt a reasonable foundation and am currently using TRT, a GLP-1 and a GH-related peptide. I want to be transparent about that rather than present this as a natural transformation.
I’m now training less: four days a week with fewer working sets. I’m leaving my ego out of the gym and focusing on execution rather than simply moving the most weight possible. Training has become almost like a form of meditation. I’m present, controlled and focused on feeling the target muscle working.
Recovery has also become a priority. I’m currently aiming for a minimum of 6.5 hours of sleep and working toward improving that further. Previously, I spent years surviving on four-and-a-half to five hours, thinking I was hardcore for sleeping less while pushing almost every set in the gym to failure. Looking back, I wasn’t hardcore. I was just making it harder for my body to recover and progress.
The goal from here isn’t a reckless bulk or a short-lived transformation. I want to push forward slowly, using conservative and considered doses, regularly monitoring my health markers and remaining relatively lean throughout the process.
This log will cover the entire rebuild: training, nutrition, recovery, health, habits and mindset. I turn 37 this month, and I don’t want to keep repeating the same patterns or waste more years waiting for the perfect time.
New habits. New mindset. A better standard.
The aim is simple: build the strongest, healthiest and most complete version of myself that I realistically can before 40, then keep building from there.
This is day one of BuiltB4Forty.
